Does the death penalty teach a lesson?

Question

Doesn't prison already serve the purpose of removing them from society?

Answer 1

It's supposed to prevent violent crime or at least be a deterrent. Given the rise in violent crimes I wouldn't say we are deterring anything. I also don't agree with state sanctioned murder. Does the UK have more murders per capita, Germany,
France, Italy, Greece......many countries who have abolished the death penalty haven't seen the dreaded 'spike in violent crime'.
I do not understand why we do this and never will. Yes, I am the relative of a murder victim and it still feels wrong.
(Buddhist Yogini)

Answer 2

Locking murderers up for life without parole is sufficient. The death penalty does not deter others from committing the same crime.

In fact, homicide rates are higher in states and regions with the death penalty than in those without it.

For a punishment to deter others it must be sure and swift. The death penalty is neither. In view of the 124 people on death row who have been exonerated and the fact that over 50 of them had already served more than a decade, speeding up the process will guarantee we execute innocent people, which most of us believe would be a nightmare.

Life without parole is available in 48 states. It means what it says, is sure and swift and rarely appealed. It costs much less than the death penalty.

Answer 3

I think that the death penalty is used as a deterrent, but so is a prison sentence! I think that the death penalty is used often when people commit horrific crimes and there is no way that we see that they can be rehabilitated. I do not agree, completely with the death penalty.(Mainly because) Some people see it as a way to get revenge. You cant teach someone a lesson by killing them... As far as I know. It's hard to come to a decision on this one... Do I think it's right to kill people because they have made a mistake? On the rare occasion. I know that in my heart it is wrong.

Answer 4

It used to. I think that because of the wiles of crafty attorneys, the appellate system and such, people have less fear of the death penalty. If they are sentenced to death, it could take years before they reach "the chair".

What is a life in prison? Free food, shelter, cable, Internet, education, medical...this teaches no one anything. This costs the taxpayer a ton of money to house and feed people who stole from and murdered our neighbors.

For the violent offenders who have led a life of crime and violence, they should be completely removed from society. It is not the most pleasant thought, but if a repeatedly violent offender shows himself non-reformable, it is time to end his life.

Very, very few criminals of a certain level of repeated offense prove themselves reformable. The ones whose lives are bent on violence are particularly dangerous on society and even in prison. So, should we just lock them up in a dark cell by themselves for the rest of their lives? That would be considered cruel. Death is swift, they make it painless and it will not cost the taxpayer for years to come.

Answer 5

Not that I support or not-support the death penalty... I'm still considering and collecting information about my views on that. But I'd say not really. How can it teach people a lesson if they're dead? It theoratically should teach people not to commit crimes, or else they're die... But the point of the death penalty is not to teach a lesson, anyway. It is to punish criminals...

Answer 6

Of course not.

What lesson is to be learned from dying when you are no longer alive to learn that lesson?

I believe the death penalty is more about weeding out the unsavory characters from society so they can no longer pose a threat to anyone. It's not about punishment.

Edit:
and as jeffyb says, it can be a deterrent.

Answer 7

It isn't supposed to teach a lesson, it is just a way of saying that a person has done something so awful that they are going to be seperated from society. I am not sure how I feel about capital punishment though.

Answer 8

Yea, and a big one. Yesterday (The 5th) was the 2nd year anniversary of my fathers death. It hurts a lot. and It made me grow up fast and realize a lot. I changed A LOT since then, maybe too much. Everyone says that Im doing things that someone twice my age does. I finished high school early, I would be a senior now. But I finish a year early. And while I was in school, I took college courses too. And got a job. I just wish he could see all of it.

Answer 9

Teach a lesson to who? The person who gets the death penalty will utimately die so what does that matter. I don't think crimals and murders etc ever really learn their lessons there are so many repeat offenders.

Answer 10

Sure, it propagates the notion that life is meaningless and can be extinguished by anyone of "power," whether said power be a knife, a gun, or a lethal injection.

But does it serve as a crime deterrent? No. Countries without the death penalty actually have a lower crime rate.