Should there be a death penalty?

Question

Do you think the death penalty should be abolished? Or is it a good thing? and why do you feel that way?

Answer 1

You should make up your mind on this issue using verifiable and sourced facts. Here are a few.

Re: cost
The death penalty costs far more than life in prison. The huge extra costs start to mount up even before the trial. Several people who answered your question are mistaken about this.

Re: Alternatives
48 states now have life without parole on the books. Life without parole means what it says. Being locked up in a tiny cell, 23 hours a day, with nothing to look forward to, is certainly no picnic. (Peejay, Jake X, Torskie and ALunaticFriend should look at this).

Re: Possibility of executing an innocent person
Over 120 people on death rows have been released with evidence of their innocence. If we speed up the process we are bound to execute an innocent person. (For Tallspot07)

Re: Deterrence
The death penalty isn’t a deterrent. Murder rates are actually higher in states with the death penalty than in states without it. Moreover, people who kill or commit other serious crimes do not think they will be caught (if they think at all.)

Re: Who gets the death penalty
The death penalty isn’t reserved for the “worst of the worst,” but rather for defendants with the worst lawyers. When is the last time a wealthy person was sentenced to death, let alone executed??

Re: Victims families
The death penalty is very hard on victims’ families. They must relive their ordeal in the courts and the media. Life without parole is sure, swift and rarely appealed. Some victims families who support the death penalty in principal prefer life without parole because of how the death penalty affects families like theirs.

Opposing the death penalty doesn’t mean you condone brutal crimes or excuse people who commit them. We should make up our minds using common sense based on solid facts, not revenge.

Answer 2

Advocates of the death penalty sometimes feel that it is a mercy killing, to spare criminals from the insanity of high-security prisons. Others feel that criminals have few rights and a serial killer does not deserve to be spared.

Opponents feel that it's inhuman to kill people, even criminals, and that law enforcement should not do the same thing as murderers.

As for the juvenile death penalty, I feel that it should be abolished (and has been, in the US).

It's not a good thing, by all means, but may be necessary. I'd prefer that a serial killer is dead and that he does not come back to kill more innocent people. However, if the death penalty is wrongly used on the wrong person, then there is no going back. The person is already dead.

The death penalty should be exercised on a case-by-case basis.

Answer 3

No, for some crimes there should be a conscequence for such actions of killing a person or for terrible crimes, now on the other hand yes, i can see that it can be looked at as a very bad thing but some crimes have no other way of dealing with them in a fair manner to the victim/s so in conclusion i believe that it should not be abolished because of the fact that some crimes are only delt with fairly with the death penalty.

Answer 4

No it should not be abolished it should be streamlined and lest costly. If you do not end the life of the person doing the crime, the victims life was meaningless. I am trying to look into repeat offenders from prison. And how many innocent people would be saved if we killed a murderer. By the way an eye for an eye was not a benchmark to shoot for in Jewish taechings, but a benchmark not to be shot over. people would take your hand for stealing. Since a hand was not taken the jews thought those punishments were too harsh.

Answer 5

No. The death penalty is a necessary evil. There are those who would flaunt the law and live their lives in prison laughing at all of us. RIchard Speck in Illionos is an example; murdered 8 nurses in the 1960s and died laughing at the system. John Gacy murdered many children and dies by letthal injection....getting the justice and saving the taxpayers the money to feed and store him in a comfortable fashion.

Answer 6

I think all child molesters should be put to sleep! I am aware that would eliminate a big portion of the human race, but think about it, everyone left would be so scared they probably wouldn't do it. As for everyone else, if they committed the crime, are found guilty and are afraid of dying then I think they should be put to sleep. Let them feel the fear of dying just like their victims. If they are ready to die then I think we should keep them alive in jail. And when I say jail, I mean one meal a day, no t.v., no air conditioning, no gyms (only to make them bigger! That's stupid), no privileges AT ALL. Prisoners sometimes say, "they treat us like animals", well I think if they didn't act like animals they wouldn't be in there in the first place. I think they should work but only to pay for their clothes, food, facility expenses, and pay a small portion everyday to the victims or their families. That way everyday they are reminded of why they are in there! I do think the payment should go to a bank account where the victims are not reminded daily of the experience. That way they can deal with it on their own when they are ready. I really do agree the only time they should use the death penalty is when they know for sure they committed the crime. As for criminals who really didn't physically hurt anyone I think they should put them in a jail away from the hard-core criminals, but I still think they should work for everything.

Answer 7

Though I do have a problem with saying the death penalty is a "good thing" I think in certain cases it may be necessary. If a person who is found guilty of murder is PROVEN without a doubt guilty, he/she should be put to death.. We have far more important things we should be putting our money into then to cater to a prisoner who will never see the light of day.

Answer 8

There should not be a death penalty at all for any reason. Murder for Murder is not justice in any way. If you want to punish someone for a crime, put them in prison. Prison is punishment enough for anyone. It's hypocrisy. If you spank your child for hitting another child while telling them not to hit, they're just going to be confused. It's hypocrisy. It's unjust. Murder is Murder. We also must pay attention to the fact that we are now finding more and more innocent victims in prisons thanks to dna testing, and we know people are set up or just in the wrong place at the wrong time sometimes. It's not a good thing for any reason at all.

Answer 9

Absolutely not! Why should a murderer have the right to live at our expense while his victims and their families had no rights at all? The one thing that needs to be changed, is the long period of time that we are required to support these criminals, at a cost that is much higher than the income of most law abiding families. It is a pretty sad situation when criminals have more rights than the law abiding citizens do in this country. They get room and board and free medical care, something many working families can't afford.

Answer 10

I think it needs massive reform. I think it's cool to kill people for bad crimes but with the current system it takes years of apeals to finally do them in. What a waste of money. Leaving people in this world who are clearly and by any standards evil is irresponsible.