Has anyone ever done an essay on the death penalty has no place in U.S.?

Answer 1

One of your answers, from nitro, has given you some good info. Essays about the death penalty tend to discuss it on eithical or religious grounds. However, there are practical reasons and facts that are leading Americans to oppose it. Here are some more facts about the death penalty, all sourced and verifiable.

Re: Alternatives
48 states have life without parole on the books. It means what it says, is swift and sure and is rarely appealed. Being locked in a tiny cell for 23 hours a day, forever, is certainly no picnic. Life without parole incapacitates a killer (keeps him from re-offending) and costs considerably less than the death penalty.

Re: Possibility of executing an innocent person
Over 120 people on death rows have been released with evidence of their innocence. Many had already served over 2 decades on death row. If we speed up the process we are bound to execute an innocent person. Once someone is executed the case is closed. If we execute an innocent person we are not likely to find that out and, also, the real criminal is still out there.

Re: DNA
DNA is available in no more than 10% of murder cases. It is not a miracle cure for sentencing innocent people to death. It’s human nature to make mistakes.

Re: Appeals
Our appeals system is designed to make sure that the trial was in accord with constitutional standards, not to second guess whether the defendant was actually innocent. It is very difficult to get evidence of innocence introduced before an appeals court.

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: cost
The death penalty costs far more than life in prison. The huge extra costs start to mount up even before the trial. There are more cost effective ways to prevent and control crime.

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. According to a Gallup Poll, in 2006, 47% of all Americans prefer capital punishment while 48% prefer life without parole. Americans are learning the facts and making up their minds using common sense, not revenge or an eye for an eye mentality.

Answer 2

This site will tell you a lot about the death penalty. http://deathpenaltyinfo.org/ -this is where i got most my info from
States with the death penalty have higher crime rates thatstates without. In addition it cost a ton more-more than double than life imprisonment-focus highly on cost. Tell how cruel the methods are like lethalk injection- professionals can't do it because they can't help kill because of the hippocratic oath. Also use a lot of religios info-like Roman Catholic Church is against it. There is also a theory that because it costs a lot more it causes more crime because it uses up money that could be spent on law enforcement and streert lights and anti-drug programs.

Answer 3

Yes. Just about everyone who has taken a College Freshman English class has written that paper, or it's opposite, the "fry the SOB's" paper.

Answer 4

thats more of an oppinion essay .... i myself think that the death penalty is a good thing............................... i would say find as many pros and cons that you can and use them both in your essay, and then in the conclusion sum up why you think its bad..........