Abstract
This paper examines the death penalty as a deterrent and argues that states have not only the right but the duty to apply the death penalty to criminal cases because it is incumbent upon states to back the law with force. The death penalty acts as a forceful and compelling consequence for those who should choose to violate the law and commit murder. For that reason it can be said to be a deterrent. This paper also examines the opposing arguments and shows that those would say it is not an effective deterrent cannot… Continue Reading...
The film Dead Man Walking presents a complex view of the death penalty, as the filmmakers avoid oversimplifying the issue or pontificating a particular point of view. Sister Helen (Susan Sarandon) is called upon to work with a man on death row: Matthew Poncelet (Sean Penn). Poncelet is presented as a thoroughly distasteful human being, one that the audience can scarce sympathize with at first. Yet as his immanent death approaches, Poncelet does change, however meaningless and futile that small change may be. His initial deceit fades into a frank recognition of his crime, and the audience is left to wonder… Continue Reading...
in the world which still permits capital punishment on a state-by-state basis. Not all states have the death penalty but executions are still carried out in the United States and the punishment remains controversial.
Despite the singularity of its status internationally, the death penalty has historically been a popular policy in the United States, even though it has been hotly debated throughout US history in the legislature and the courts. This essay on death penalty will examine its legal statusin the United States, its history, and its future.
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Topics
The Future of the Death Penalty in America
Why America Has a Death Penalty
Death Penalty: Arguments… Continue Reading...
despite the fact he committed such evil deeds.
I have more complex views on the death penalty. For the most part, I disagree with it, as I object to the notion that human beings should be able to play God with others. All humans have the right to life, and there’s nothing in philosophy that necessarily dictates that humans have the right to seize that right from other humans. Furthermore, many of the ways that humans are put to death via capital punishment can actually be quite painful. There also hasn’t been adequate research that killing people actually deters others from engaging in criminal activity.… Continue Reading...
The death penalty should exist as a deterrent but only in a society where the criminal justice system is aligned with social justice—i.e., in a state where there is no deviation from the way the community views justice and from the way the criminal justice system views justice. Criminal justice and social justice must be in accordance, as Bazelon asserts, in order for a system of law to work, to be fair, to be equitable, and to be effective. In a society where social justice is at odds with criminal justice,… Continue Reading...
The death penalty is a vestige of the past, a time when vengeance and retribution were the standard means of dealing with transgressions or deviance. While there are significant drawbacks with the American penal system and corrections institutions, a life term in prison is a far more reasonable sentence for the most heinous of crimes than capital punishment is. There are several reasons why the death penalty plays no role at all in a civilized democracy, and why it also threatens to undermine the very foundations of Constitutional law. The worst… Continue Reading...
and equality over the abuses of Arab rule. Imagine a homosexual person supporting Palestine – where their very existence would subject them to the death penalty – over Israel. Israel's culture of democracy, education and openness is much more aligned with traditional American values than Arab culture.
Interesting that a "tilt" is pre-assumed. I assume this attempt to lead the students is not at all rooted in bias. But in all honesty, America's role in the Israel/Palestine conflict reflects its power in the region, not a desire or goal to be some magically neutral third party. There is no neutral negotiator in this conflict; all parties have agendas and they negotiate on the basis… Continue Reading...
holds that there should be no compulsion in religious, nevertheless, the traditional Islamic law implements harsh punishment for apostasy between a life imprisonment for women and death penalty for men. In essence, the Sharia law views the action of apostasy as forbidden known as Haram. While the human right law affirms freedom of religion, however, the Sharia law forbids freedom of religion, and a change from Islam to other religions is highly restricted. Some Islamic states inflict a penalty of capital punishment for converting to other religions.
Rehman, (2014) uses the rejectionist theoretical approach to argue about the incompatibility of Islam with human rights. The author points out that "Sharia can never be compatible with the… Continue Reading...
and conservatives have various policies. The first policy we will talk about is death penalty. According to liberals, death penalty is ‘cruel and unusual’ and it should be abolished as every instance such an execution is made, there is a risk of killing an innocent person. However, conservatives believe that death penalty is the ideal punishment for any murderer who has taken away an innocent life. (Graham et.al 2009)
The second policy is the Embryonic Stem Cell Research. According to the liberals, using embryonic stem cells for research is needful and ethical and the government should fund such scientists as it goes a… Continue Reading...
death penalty) with the act of killing civilians in war to make his point. In the case of the former, the death sentence is given as a form of punishment for a crime committed. The person executed is found guilty of an offense worthy of capital punishment. In the case of the latter, those exterminated on not judged to have been guilty of any offense. Their “crime” is merely that they live in a country that is at war with another country. Instead of the countries fighting it out on… Continue Reading...
firing at the window of the Customs House. All of them faced the death penalty for what they did. The rather brisk pace at which things progressed from the actual even to a trial is rather concerning. However, this does not mean that the wrong decision was made. Another concerning matter is that the group had a hard time finding counsel. However, they eventually succeeded in finding a lawyer in the form of John Adams. To state the obvious, this was a fairly interesting choice for Adams given that he was defending men who were accused of murdering five people. Once things did… Continue Reading...
camp. In Norway, the approach to law and order is much different: there is no death penalty in Norway, no life sentences, no armed police. An interview with Norway's State Philosopher is also very revealing: he shows that the country is forward-looking instead of consumed with the present, with the here-and-now, with the Me Generation. Norway wants to conserve its resources (it will spend its surplus but preserve its capital) so that future generations will benefit -- and this mentality is also realized in the country's approach to corrections. Those who break the law are viewed sympathetically rather than vilified or viewed as potential source… Continue Reading...
