capital punishment...???

Question

so i was wonder what the majority of yahooligans' opinions are about capital punishment, and i was wondering what some of your major arguements are for either side....arguements?? opinions? stats? anyone?

Answer 1

I struggle with it. On one hand, one innocent person executed is one too many. On the other hand, Charles Manson is still occupying space and resources.

Answer 2

Here are answers to some questions that people ask about the death penalty system. The sources are listed below.

Isn't the death penalty cheaper than keeping criminals in prison?
The death penalty costs much more than life in prison. Much of the extra costs is due to the complicated nature of both the pre trial investigation and of the trials (involving 2 separate stages, mandated by the Supreme Court) in death penalty cases. There are more cost effective ways to prevent and control crime.

What about the risk of executing innocent people?
Over 120 people on death rows have been released with evidence of their innocence, many having already served over 2 decades on death row.

Doesn't DNA keep new cases like these from happening?
DNA is available in less than 10% of all homicides. It is not a guarantee against the execution of innocent people.

Doesn't the death penalty prevent others from committing murder?
No reputable study shows the death penalty to be a deterrent. Homicide rates are higher in states that have it than in states that do not. Most killers don't think about the consequences anyway. They do not think they will be caught (if they think at all.)

So, what are the alternatives?
Life without parole is now on the books in 48 states. It means what it says. Supermax prisons are terrible places to spend the rest of your life. Life without parole is less expensive than the death penalty.

What about the very worst crimes?
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??

Doesn't the death penalty help families of murder victims?
Not necessarily. Murder victim family members across the country argue that the drawn-out death penalty process is painful for them and that life without parole is an appropriate alternative.

So, why don't we speed up the process?
Many of the 123 innocent people released from death row had already been there for over 2 decades. If the process is speeded up we are sure to execute an innocent person.

But don’t Americans prefer the death penalty as the most serious punishment?
Not any more. People are rethinking their views, given the facts and the records on innocent people sentenced to death. According to a Gallup Poll, in 2006, 47% of all Americans prefer capital punishment while 48% prefer life without parole.

Answer 3

How in the world would you make a murderer pay for a life? Keeping a convicted murderer alive simply makes the possibility of parole and more murder that much more feasible.

What suffering could possibly be done to bring relief to the victims' families?

Murderers like everybody else have their entire life to make their peace with God even up to the last breath before their execution.

Answer 4

Charles Manson - Never killed anyone. He had people do it for him.

Capital Punishment, what right does the State have to take a life?

Mass killers like Peckerhead in Virginia, they should make things easy for everyone and go out and just kill themselves.

Answer 5

I am against capital punishment:
1 - criminals should be made to pay for their crimes - they should provide some service to pay back people for what they have done.
2 - Mistakes happen, they could be innocent.
3 - The criminals should be punished in prison, and should suffer to satisfy the victims.
4 - Criminals should have ever chance possible to make their peace with God, so that maybe they won't have to burn in Hell.