Death penalty?

Question

Can you tell me what do you think about capital punishment? I'm writing an essay, so I need YOUR opinion, not an article from Wikipedia... I've already asked some of my friends and I have got less arguments againts death penalty. Can you help me?

Answer 1

If Britain had the death penalty, the Guildford 4 and the Birmingham 6 would have been executed. They were later freed after years in prison. Many people who have been executed have been pardoned (WW1 soldiers were the subject of a famous recent campaign).

Prisoners spend 20 years on death row anyway and the court costs for appeals are enormous..

The execution of Saddam Hussein made him a martyr. Watching him grow old and die would have been a better outcome for the world.

Answer 2

I oppose it because it is not an effective way of preventing or reducing crime. Here are answers to questions often asked about the death penalty. The sources are listed below, and do not include widipedia. Several people who answered your question are wrong about costs, wrong about deterrence and several gave you no facts at all.

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. The costs for different states are easily found at the first source I listed.

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. Americans are learning about the system and we are making up our minds based on facts, not eye for an eye sound bites.

Answer 3

I do not believe in the death penalty. Life in prison without parole is a much harsher sentence. I would keep the death penalty for anyone who killed a Police Officer, a Fireman on duty or a pedophile who not only abused a child but killed him'her.

Answer 4

I am in favor of capital punishment. Some crimes are so heinous that death is the only appropriate punishment. A serial killer kills 15 people before he is caught. He rapes and tortures women victims before he kills them. He should be put to death. Death was the appropriate sentence for Saddam Hussein. He was a mass murderer.

Answer 5

Its morally aprehensible. It does not create a disincentive to commit murder. USA homicide rate 5.9/100,000, EU homicide rate 2.36/100,000. The rate is double that in the US than in the EU which has no death penalty.

It is also not justice it is revenge. When a person is murdered it is not the victims family that requires justice but society.

Killing another citizen because he killed does not help society it hinders its development, it is better for the guilty party to be either rehibilited if possible or permenantly locked away from society and to be studied to find out why they murdered so we can try and prevent such atrocities happening again.

Answer 6

First of all, 85% of people surveyed believe in capital punishment, which is why you got less arguements against it.

A person who has demonstrated the willingness to destroy the lives of others has no place in society and must be removed. Yes, tougher punishments like life in prison can keep these people off the streets, however they are still causing negative effects on society from within their cell walls.


You ned to take into account that on average, it costs $55,000 per year to incarcerate a person long term. If a murderer is given a life sentence and lives in prison over a 30 year period, the bill to tax payers when added up is estimated to be ONE MILLION, SIX HUNDRED FIFTY THOUSAND DOLLARS. That is for one murderer. Assuming that he is not paroled and gets back into society and kills again.

So, right now it is estimated that there are 128,000 criminals serving life terms across the US. The bill to taxpayers for one year is SEVEN BILLION, FORTY MILLION DOLLARS. After thrity years, tax payers will have spent TWO HUNDRED ELEVEN BILLION, TWO HUNDRED MILLION DOLLARS housing criminals on life sentences.

This money could be better spent on education or housing and healthcare for the less fortunate if these criminals were executed.

Answer 7

I am in favor of the death penalty simply because it makes people more AFRAID to commit a crime. You kill someone? You die! In some countries, you can get executed for bringing drugs into the country or even something as petty at vandalism. You don`t see a lot of drugs or vandalism in those countries. Of course, there people need to be given time on death row to prove their innocents if they are indeed innocent.

Answer 8

I say no, simply because i think life in prison is a tougher sentence than death

Answer 9

Ask a Christian. Death Penalty is depicted in the Bible.
They may have different views since the religion itself has changed.
Good Luck!

Answer 10

it costs the taxpayers around $40,000 per year to keep a prisoner in. $50,000 for a Prisoner that needs special diets like Vegan or religious Like Muslim. $60,000 Plus for the aged or the sick. $78,000 for one year if they get a sex change. $98,000 for high risk like Charlie Manson. Money that could go to Education or Veterans benefits or food for the Poor. Kill them.