Some more interesting
stats:
Public Opinion Polls on the Death Penalty In 1965, according to a Harris poll,
38 percent of U.S. poll respondents believed in the death penalty;
47 percent opposed it. In 2001,
67 percent said they believed in the death penalty and only
26 percent opposed it. A 1996 poll (no longer available online) conducted by Sam Houston State University found that 73.4 percent of respondents nationwide favored the death penalty for persons convicted of murder, but of those, 20.1 percent no longer favored the death penalty if convicted murderers were given a "true" life sentence -- that is, sentenced to life imprisonment without possiblity of parole.
Pros and Cons of the Death Penalty From
DeborahWhite Capital punishment, also dubbed the "death penalty," is the pre-meditated and planned taking of a human life by a government in response to a crime committed by that legally convicted person.
Passions in the US are sharply divided, and equally strong among both supporters and protesters of the death penalty.
Arguing against capital punishment, Amnesty International believes that "The death penalty is the ultimate denial of human rights. It is the premeditated and cold-blooded killing of a human being by the state in the name of justice. It violates the right to life...It is the ultimate cruel, inhuman and degrading punishment. There can never be any justification for torture or for cruel treatment."
Arguing for capital punishment, the Clark County, Indiana Prosecuting Attorney writes that "...there are some defendants who have earned the ultimate punishment our society has to offer by committing murder with aggravating circumstances present. I believe life is sacred. It cheapens the life of an innocent murder victim to say that society has no right to keep the murderer from ever killing again. In my view, society has not only the right, but the duty to act in self defense to protect the innocent."
And Catholic Cardinal McCarrick, Archbishop of Washington, writes "...the death penalty diminishes all of us, increases disrespect for human life, and offers the tragic illusion that we can teach that killing is wrong by killing."
AGAINST THE DEATH PENALTY (CONS) For source, click
here
Death Penalty Fails to Rehabilitate What would it accomplish to put someone on death row? The victim is already dead-you cannot bring him back. When the opponents feel “fear of death†will prevent one from committing murder, it is not true because most murders are done on the “heat of passion†when a person cannot think rationally. Therefore, how can one even have time to think of fear in the heat of passion (Internet)?
Death Penalty Failed as a Deterrent Some criminologist claim they have statistically proven that when an execution is publicized, more murders occur in the day and weeks that follow. A good example is in the Linberg kidnapping. A number of states adopted the death penalty for crime like this, but figures showed kidnapping increased. Publicity may encourage crime instead of preventing it (McClellan, G., 1961).
Death is one penalty which makes error irreversible and the chance of error is inescapable when based on human judgment . On the contrary, sometimes defendants insist on execution. They feel it is an act of kindness to them. The argument here is - Is life imprisonment a crueler fate?†Is there evidence supporting the usefulness of the death penalty securing the life of the citizens (McClellan, G. 1961)?
Does the death penalty give increased protection against being murdered? This argument for continuation of the death penalty is most likely a deterrent, but it has failed as a deterrent. There is no clear evidence because empirical studies done in the 50’s by Professor Thorsten Sellin, (sociologist) did not give support to deterrence (McClellan, G., 1961).
Does not Discourage Crime It is noted that we need extreme penalty as a deterrent to crime. This could be a strong argument if it could be proved that the death penalty discourages murderers and kidnappers. There is strong evidence that the death penalty does not discourage crime at all (McClellan, G., 1961).
Grant McClellan (1961) claims: In 1958 the10 states that had the fewest murders –fewer than two a year per 100,000 population -were New Hampshire Iowa, Minnesota, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Wisconsin, Rhode Island, Utah, North Dakota and Washington. Four of these 10 states had abolished the death penalty. The 10 states, which had the most murderers from right to fourteen killings per100,000 population were Nevada, Alabama, Georgia, Arkansas, and Virginia - all of them enforce the death penalty. The fact is that fear of the death penalty has never served to reduce the crime rate (p. 40).
Conviction of the Innocent Occurs The states that have the death penalty should be free of murder, but those states have the most murders, and the states that abolished the death penalty has less. Conviction of the innocent does occur and death makes a miscarriage of justice irrevocable. Two states Maine and Rhode Island abolished the death penalty because of public shame and remorse after they discovered they executed some innocent men.
Fear of Death Does not Reduce Crime The fear of the death penalty has never reduced crime. Through most of history executions were public and brutal. Some criminals were even crushed to death slowly under heavy weight. Crime was more common at that time than it is now. Evidence shows execution does not act as a deterrent to capital punishment.
Motives for Death Penalty - Revenge According to Grant McClellan (1961), the motives for the death penalty may be for revenge. Legal vengeance solidifies social solidarity against law breakers and is the alternative to the private revenge of those who feel harmed.
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LooTe
