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Megan O’Rourke

McLaughlin

English 12

29 September 2020

Stand with the Death Penalty

One of the most controversial topics of argument in the United States is the death penalty.

This form of punishment is as old as civilization itself but was not really opposed until the

1800’s when people saw the behavior as cruel and useless crime deterrent. However, the death

penalty is a very important statute to uphold in modern times.

It was 1608 when the death penalty came to the United States with European settlers. The

first ever recorded execution was Captain George Kendall in the Jamestown colony for the

crime of spying. Since colonial times, execution has been carried out through various forms,

including hanging, shooting, gassing and lethal injection. In 1972, the Supreme Court ruled that

capital punishment was unconstitutional in Furman v Georgia. The Supreme Court ruled this

way because they saw that “the death penalty was a violation of the Eighth Amendment

prohibition against cruel and unusual punishment because of the inconsistency in who was given

a death sentence and who was not” (“A History of Death Penalty in America”). Since then up to

July of 2020 there have been 1,156 people executed by the states, firing squad style. The most

recent execution was September 24th of 2020, Christopher Vialva was executed for the murders

of two youth ministers in 1999. The next one listed that is supposed to happen is December 3rd

of 2020, Pervis Tyrone Payne is to be executed for the attempted rape of Charisse Christopher

and then the following murders of her and her two year old daughter Lacie. When there are people
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in the public doing horrific things whether it's killing, torturing, or raping, the death penalty would be a

sufficent way to make sure they could never do it again.

According to Louise Gaille, the author of the article “15 Biggest Capital Punishment Pros and

Cons,” capital punishment is not a real fix for the real problems:

Although some societies may see temporary benefits from its implementation, the use of

death as a deterrent against crime says more about the people who want it than the people

who commit crime in the first place. If we execute murderers and there is no deterrent

effect, then we have killed murderers. If we fail to execute murderers, which would have

deterred others from committing such a crime, then we would have allowed the killing of

innocent victims. (Gaille)

Regardless of her argument, capital punishment is necessary and should be used in

modern society because there is a great need. Capital punishment elimiates the symapthy for the

criminal who has done horrific things. When a criminal is charged with capital crime, there is

sympathy toward the individual or just towards the family. Instead of doing that the law should

be doing actions to encourage other people not to commit the same crimes that another

individual has done. Using capital punishment would help jails with their problems with

overpopulation. “About 443,000 people have not been convicted of anything and are awaiting

trial. Another 41,000 are in detention in immigration centers without conviction” (Gaille). Just

in the U.S. there are more than 2.3 million people being held in state and federal prisons, local

jails, juvenile correctional centers, immigration detention centers and military prisons while

704,000 are labeled as violent offenders. Swiftly executing those who have been sentenced for

violent crimes would alleviate this problem. Furthermore, in his article “Unfair Application of
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Capital Punishment Does Not Justify Abolishing It,” Louis P. Pojman writes, “Public executions

of the convicted murderer would serve as a reminder that crime does not pay. Public executions

of criminals seem to be an efficient way to communicate the message that if shed innocent blood,

you will pay high prices… I agree on the matter of accountability but also believe such publicity

would serve to deter homicide.” Jeffery Dahmer was known as the Milwaukee Cannibal or the

Milwaukee Monster. Dahmer,a serial killer and sex offender, commited murders and

dismemberment of seventeen men and boys from 1978-1991. Dahmer was sent to the Columbia

Correctional Institute where he was eventually killed by a fellow inmate. He was not on death

row because of his crimes. Instead, he was given sixteen life sentences. Had he been executed

quickly for his horrific crimes, he would not have been murdered in prison.

Although a lot of people believe capital punishment should a allowed, there is still a large

number of people who oppose it. Only twenty-eight out of fifty states in the U.S. still use capital

punishment. In the article “Pros and Cons of the Death Penalty,” Deborha White states, “The

death penalty is the ultimate denial of human rights. It is the premeditated and cold-blooded

killing of a human being by the state in the name of justice. It violates the right to life...It is the

ultimate cruel, inhuman and degrading punishment. There can never be any justification for

torture or for cruel treatment.​” In addition to it being inhumane, many faith groups would see it

as not being “pro life.” They also bring race and ethnicity into it saying some capital

punishments are racist. Capital punishment takes away the chance of someone to rehibiliate, or to

be restored. “The death penalty diminishes all of us, increases disrespect for human life, and

offers the tragic illusion that we can teach that killing is wrong by killing” (White). It does not
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directly address the issue of a crime. If someone gets killed for killing it’s not really helping the

problem.

Even more important in their argument is to point out that since 1970 over 160 people

have been exonerated after being charged with a capital crime. No one will really know how

many people who were innocent have actually been executed. Another argument is that capital

punishment costs more than giving someone life in prison. The average cost for a case is

$740,000, and that is without capital punishment. When the crime of capital punishment to the

case the average cost is $1.26 million.

Even though there are very valid arguments against the death penalty, it is still the best

overall crime deterrent. The U.S. judicial system must continue to use the death penalty in

modern times to punish people for the terrible acts they commit against others. Those people

violently stole life away from others and they should not be rewarded with a life in prison, no

matter how hard it may appear to outsiders. It is still a reward because those people are alive

while the victims have been brutally murdered. The death penalty will keep Americans safe from

violent offenders. It is time to harshly punish those who do not value human life.
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Works Cited

Amnesty International. “The Death Penalty Should Be Abolished.” Criminal Justice, edited by

David Haugen and Susan Musser, Greenhaven Press, 2009. Opposing Viewpoints. Gale In

Context: Opposing Viewpoints, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/

EJ3010119285/OVIC?u=pl2127&sid=OVIC&xid=5df68209. Accessed 23 Sept. 2020.

Originally published as “The Death Penalty v. Human Rights: Why Abolish the Death

Penalty?” 2007.

Gaille, Louise. “15 Biggest Capital Punishment Pros and Cons.” vittana.org, 8 June 2018,

https://vittana.org/15-biggest-capital-punishment-pros-and-cons. Accessed 9 September 2020.

“Should the Death Penalty be Allowed?” ProCon.org, ProCon.org, 26 March 2019,

https://deathpenalty.procon.org. Accessed 8 September 2020.

“Should the Death Penalty be Banned as a Form of Punishment?” balancedpolitics.org, 2020,

https://www.balancedpolitics.org/death_penalty.htm. Accessed 9 September 2020.

White, Deborah. “Pros and Cons of the Death Penalty.” Thoughtco, 28 January 2020,

https://www.thoughtco.com/pros-and-cons-death-penalty-3325230. Accessed 10 September

2020.