Does the death penalty work? I'm not asking if you agree with it or not, is it working?

Question

Are people who commit these crimes afraid to die, which would deter them from committing the crimes because of the penalty? Is it just the revenge factor?

Answer 1

Well, the only thing I can say about it is that it keeps the murderer from committing another murder.
The bad thing is that innocent people get convicted. Not very good when an innocent person is executed.

Answer 2

It is impossible to know exactly how many people would commit crimes if they weren't afraid of the concequences, so there is no way of knowing if the death penalty is in fact a deterent.

I think knowing you will lose your life if you take someones is a deterent. I think the only people who still commit murder are those who A) are in emotional turmoil B) Don't think they'll get caught or C) don't want to live anymore anyway. I know there are several people that I would have killed already if I wasn't worried about spending the rest of my life in jail.

Crimes of passion would be impossible to be rid of, neither having nor not having the death penalty would have any effect. The only way to get rid of the people who don't think they'll get caught, is to prove them wrong. The best way to get rid of the murderers who don't want to live anymore (IE: School shooters) is to make suicide more available/socially acceptable.

As others have said, it does prevent them from ever getting back on the streets. A life sentance is only 25 years. With good behavior, a murderer could be back on the streets in under 15.

Is it moral to kill someone just because they have taken a life? If it prevents further harm to the community by removing a killer, than I argue it is.

Answer 3

I think the obvious answer to the first part of your question is that yes, the people who commit those crimes whereupon the death penalty is a possibility are afraid to die. They're just dumb enough or egotistical enough to actually believe that they won't get caught at their crime and / or that no one will convict them and give them the death penalty for a variety of reasons. Their stupidity and ego and lack of emotional control, otherwise known as gross immaturity, allows them to go ahead and commit the crime, so the obvious answer to the second part of your question is no, it will not deter those individuals from committing the crime because a) they've already committed the crime and b) those types of individuals are such character disorders and lack in even the elementary levels of maturity, and therefore, in most cases, will commit the crime. The unasked part of your question is: Is the death penalty meant to deter those types of individuals from the crimes or is it aimed at more mature individuals who, bordering on a passionate loss of self control will, at the necessary time, be able to pull back from the passion of the moment, and decide NOT to commit the crime, and those individuals who, as they are growing in our society and learning that making decisions and exercising self control is the epitome of "making it" in life, and properly direct those individuals. I think the answer to your unasked question is that THAT is where the predominance of the deterrance motivation is directed towards, but we're just so lacking in control over this issue that we ask the questions that one can only answer in the anti-death penalty direction and not in the more global and correct perspective, thereby seeing just what the death penalty has always been about. Finally, therefore, the answer to the third part of your question is "hell no", for the most part. The "revenge factor" as you put it, is an "enjoyable" aspect of the sentencing that allows the family of the victim to feel some sense of retribution for the heinous crime committed against their family member. Although Christians who are familiar with the Bible are fully aware of the verse: "Revenge is mine, saith the Lord", it is still the human aspect of us that desires the retribution "here and now", and that has been allowed from the earliest part of the Old Testament of the Bible, which, by the way, was NOT erased by Jesus and His New Testament, as He Himself said. I hope this has helped you understand my viewpoint and it's origin. God Bless you.

Answer 4

NO, it is not working.. BUT there is a reason for it.

Back in the old west when you could be hung for something it was a deterent

Now when you can be put to death for something, it is NOT a deterent

What changed

PRIVACY/PUBLICITY/TIME

The death penalty needs to be public, AND there can not be so long between conviction and death.

Think of that idiot vandal who got caned for graffiti. I bet now that he is back in the good ol USA he is back at it. Why, because we do not impose drastic measures. I can also tell you that his friends did NOT do anything else while there as they realized what happened. Kids there simply dont do things like that because they SEE what happens when you do.

Kids DIE everyday, they reset the game and go on. So telling someone about a death penalty doesnt do any good. Hey if you do that you will be sentenced to death, in about 20 years.. IF you get caught.

How would that deter you?

Answer 5

The death penalty works in practice quite well, whether it is lethal injection, cyanide, electricity or hanging, once applied, excellent results are obtained, it has a track of 100% effectivity.
Obviously it is not administered to teach the murder a lesson, corpses don’t learn anything. Potential criminals are not deterred by the death penalty either. So we are left with revenge, of course, the legal system since Hammurabi calls revenge JUSTICE. "An aye for an eye", "a tooth for tooth" reads the LEX TALIONIS. The fringe benefits of applying Justice are removal of dangerous individuals from society, and considerable savings to all for not housing and feeding criminals for life.

Answer 6

There have been relatively few people who have died in the last 20 years by the death penalty, and murder goes up every year. I don't think that the rationale of deterrant is valid, but the revenge factor is. I also do not like the idea of paying for a criminal that will never be released, and shouldn;t. An easy death solves the whole problem. and yes, I do not value the life of murderer.

Answer 7

It works for me, even if it is not a deterrent, it stops the person from committing any crimes again. I would vote yes for child molesters, rapists and certain type murders, and drug pushers.
Not revenge, prevention. If you have a chickin killing dog, no matter how much you love the mutt you have to put him down cause he aint gonna change. There should be one legal and administrative review to assure everything is correct and process the action

Answer 8

I think most of them are scared; why do they try to appeal.
Rarely a criminal will say they believe they deserve the death penalty. Most the time they feel they were justified to commit the crime and don't deserve the death penalty.

Answer 9

It's not a general deterent in this country because justice isn't swiftly applied with the death penalty.

But when a person is executed they have no chance of escaping, or harming anyone else. So for that aspect yes it does work.

Answer 10

The killer feels justified in the killing of someone else but does not think he should be put to death. The killer will probably get an easier death than his victim. We have to feed, cloth, and shelter them until they have used up all legal means they can. By that time, the killer is no longer the same heartless person. It does not seem fair to let them linger but they do need every chance to prove themselves innocent. I think the appeals go on too long. It is either death or many many years of feeding,clothing, and providing shelter for someone not contributing to our society.