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Papers > People > Capital Punishment Two Wrongs Don t Make A Right
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1. Capital Punishment
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Capital Punishment Two Wrongs Don t Make A Right |
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Capital Punishment: Two Wrongs Don’t Make A Right Punishment as defined by Webster’s is to inflict a penalty on a person for an offense. Since Cain slew his brother Abel in the Old Testament of the Bible, the battle over what punishment befits the crime of murder has raged on. The United States remains the only industrialized, democratic nation utilizing capital punishment for criminal homicide (Costanza 153). Supporters of capital punishment believe that deterrence, reduction in repeat murders, incarceration cost and most of all retribution benefits override the moral and ethical issues of the death penalty. By demanding “an eye for an eye”, the uninformed American public blindly disregards the human, financial and political costs of capital punishment. ... Bush cited the reduction in violent crime in the State of Texas as a sign that capital punishment worked. ... Supporters of the death penalty concede that the capital punishment system needs overhauling to ensure standards for defense lawyers and to provide DNA testing for all death row inmates (Masters). Overhauling the system might decrease chances of wrongful convictions and ensure fair application of punishment but the question remains: does capital punishment truly provide any benefit to society? ... In addition, alternatives to capital punishment will be presented which support the values of society and not the values of the killers (Dicks 223). ... Colonial America adopted laws and codes of societal behavior from the British who in the 1700’s punished as many as fifty offenses as capital crimes (Costanza 7). The Colonists, mainly Puritans and Quakers less inclined to impose death on men, reserved capital punishment for less then twelve offenses (Costanza 7). ... In 1793, William Bradford introduced the concept of “degrees of murder” restricting capital punishment further to only crimes defined as “willful, deliberate and pre-meditated killing” or murder committed during “arson, rape, robbery and burglary” (Costanza 8-9). ... Humanity arguments revolve around the Eight Amendment of the Constitution, which prohibits “cruel and unusual punishment” against citizens in the course of upholding justice (Bureau of Justice). ... Opponents of the death penalty have long charged that death in and of itself is “cruel and unusual” punishment and violates the constitutional rights of life and liberty. ... Trials separated into two phases: the trial phase and the sentencing phase (Costanza 21-22). ... Despite legislative safeguards, the color of skin and socio-economic status of the accused determine capital convictions and executions. Blacks and the poor stand a greater risk to be charged with a capital offense and eventually executed then their white and financially secure counterparts (Costanza 71). Blacks make up more then 50% of the homicide victims in America but 86% of the executions have been blacks accused of killing a white person (Costanza 80). ... Most believe that the threat of capital punishment decreases violent crime but Hugo Bedau considered to be America’s expert on the death penalty, refutes deterrence theories for a number of reasons (cited in Dicks 186). ... Over two hundred studies have looked at crime patterns in the world over the last two centuries and the overwhelming majority proves that the death penalty does not deter murder (Costanza 96). For the argument of deterrence to be validated the assumptions must be made that murder rates are lower if capital punishment exists and conversely if capital punishment were abolished, the murder rate would increase (Costanza 96). ... For example, North Dakota had abolished the death penalty, but neighboring states Nebraska and South Dakota retained capital punishment. ... In 1984, William Bailey conducted current research using Sellins process and found that murder rates between 1973 and 1984 were higher in states that employed capital punishment (cited in Costanza 102). ... In over 200 studies conducted internationally since the 1840’s, patterns exist which point to lower homicide rates in the absence of capital punishment (Costanza 96). Deterrence claims may remain dubious but the one argument that supporters of capital punishment feel they cannot lose is the fact that if a killer is executed, he cannot kill again. ... Mark Costanza studied the cost of capital cases and prison costs in the state of Texas and found that executions cost on average 2. ... 00 to $1 million per person versus the cost of pursuing a capital case at $2. ... Crime investigations, pretrial preparations and jury selections for capital cases require a great deal of time and money. ... Most capital defendants cannot afford legal help and must rely on public defenders or court appointed lawyers to work on their behalf. |
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Title: Capital Punishment Two Wrongs Don t Make A Right
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