Death Penalty Should be Prohibited (Essay Sample)

Death penalty should be prohibited
Name
Institution
Subject
Instructor
Date
1 Introduction
The death sentence or capital punishment is the punishment executed by the death of the offender. Crimes that result in the death penalty are capital crimes. The USA lists the capital crimes that may lead to capital punishment. Some of the capital offenses include first-degree murder, espionage, genocide, the killing of a court officer or juror, the killing of witness and robbery with violence constituting to death.Some of the countries where the death sentence is applicable include North Korea, Japan, Iran, Jamaica, Pakistan, Singapore, the USA and China (Hood 2002). Despite the campaign by humanitarian groups and individuals, capital punishment is still an inhuman act and no person should be subjected to it irrespective of the atrocities performed. This paper will provide supporting and counter arguments of the execution of death sentence in our current community. The paper will also look at the findings comparatively to indicate the impact of the death penalty and determine its implication in fighting crime (Hood 2002).
2 Supporting arguments
Lambert, Clarke and Lambert (2004) observed that there are several reasons as to why the death sentence should be abolished. One of the reasons that he noted is that there is no evidence that capital punishment deters crimes. There is no evidence that the death sentence deter people from committing crime any more than the life incarceration. Another reason that Lambert, Clarke and Lambert (2004) provided is that innocent people have been convicted and executed. Capital punishment is an injustice that cannot be rectified even after collection of enough evidence. Lambert, Clarke and Lambert (2004) noted that some people have been released from the death row, others just days away from being executed. This indicates that there is no certain way of determining those that are guilty of the offense in question. Zhang (2005) also noted that capital punishment goes against every religion. Although some religious scriptures have been quoted in support of the death sentence, most religions indicate that no person has the right to decide who lives and who dies. Zhang (2005) argued that life incarceration without parole is a suitable punishment for the capital crimes. Zhang (2005) also observed that the millions used on capital punishment could be used to support the families of the victims or used to steer the economic prosperity of a country. Bad representation in the form of lawyers is another challenge in capital punishment. Bad lawyering may result in the conviction and execution of innocent people. The abolition of the death penalty by over 140 countries indicates the unfairness and injustice of death sentence. It also proves that other punishment methods may be suitable rather than the death penalty. Capital punishment has also resulted in racism. A report from the General Accounting Office in the US indicated that in 82% of the units of analysis, the race of the victims was a determiner in the likelihood of the award of a death sentence. The study also indicated that 50% of offenders in for capital punishment were blacks, considering that blacks constitute to less than 15% of the population in the US.
3 Counter arguments
Tyler and Wyber (1992) observed that the capital punishment is a fair punishment for several atrocities including involvement in terror case and genocide. Tyler and Wyber (1992) also noted that the death sentence honors human dignity as inhuman crimes such as rape, murder, genocide, and larceny are adequately dealt with. Tyler and Wyber (1992) also observed that capital punishment deters capital crimes due to the fear of execution. This, as a result, suppresses immorality that will constitute to capital crimes. Similarly, the cost of execution and that of sustaining individuals subject to life incarceration is another aspect that has brought controversies. Stack (2000) observed that the expense of the death sentence is relatively lower as compared to the cost of sustaining individuals subject to life incarceration. Additionally, Stack (2000) found that inmates in for capital offenses form gangs in prison who execute other inmates that oppose their rules and agenda. It is also evident that capital offenders may find a way to harm witnesses who testified against them (Jin 1997). This proves that life incarceration is not the answer to capital offenders as they may be involved in crime even behind bars. The death sentence is also used to send a message to capital offenders of the impact of their behavior (Jin 1997).
4 Rebuttals
Lambert, Clarke and Lambert (2004) observed that the death penalty honors human dignity by punishing capital crimes with execution. Stack (2000) however disagrees with these findings and noted that death sentence makes us the same as the offenders and does not uphold human dignity in any aspect. Similarly, Zhang (2005) disagrees with the observations made by (Jin 1997) that death sentence deters crime. Zhang (2005) noted that there is no evidence of a decline in crime rates as a result of the death penalty. Additionally, there is no enough evidence provided to prove that the cost of conducting death sentence is lower than the cost of sustaining capital offenders through life incarceration. Offenders punished for life incarceration may be involved in various activities to steer the economy and generate income to support...