Death Penalty

6 Pages 1593 Words

Research Paper—Death Penalty
Capital punishment has been in use since the ancient times; it was common among all ancient civilizations. Egyptians, Babylonians, Assyrians, Hebrews, Persians, Greeks, Romans, and Chinese prescribed it for a variety of crimes, including acts that today are considered minor offenses or not crimes at all (McCuen). In recent centuries the use of the death penalty has been a controversial issue in today’s society. Some people believe that capital punishment can reduce the rate of the crime happening and relieve the pain of victims and their families. On the other hand, some people consider that capital punishment denies humans’ right to live and is inhumane (Nathanson). In the community today, whether or not the death penalty should be in use to punish criminals is also a difficult decision for the justice system and class representatives.
Death penalty is also known as capital punishment, this is the most severe form of corporal punishment, as it requires law enforcement officers to kill the offender (Duhaime & co. Legal Dictionary). Methods of execution have somehow always fulfilled the aims of torture and revenge – nowadays surreptitiously – and usually in a highly dramatic way. There were many kinds of cruel executions such as burring the condemned alive, pinning people on the wooden cross, drowning in ponds, stoning to death, thousand cuts, and many other inhumane executions. In the 19th century, humanitarians demanded for less torturous methods to execute offenders. These methods include electrocution, gas chamber, hanging, and lethal injection (McCuen). All the states with death penalty have the method, lethal injection (Death Penalty Information Center).
The purpose of the death penalty is to punish the offender of the laws and rules and use death as a threat to prevent crimes. But in fact, the death penalty does little to prevent crime. It’s the fear of apprehension and the ...