| The death penalty, while acceptable in theory, is immoral in practice due to the inability of our current justice system to administer it fairly and with certainty of guilt. |
| Most methods of punishment that have been devised through the ages have been either deemed inhuman by our society at large, or have been specifically declared “cruel and unusual punishment” by our courts as defined by our Constitution. There are essentially three methods that remain to punish an offender. Those are monetary fine, incarceration, and in extreme circumstances, death. The third method, death, is still controversial, has been banned in most of the rest of the world, and has even been declared “cruel and unusual punishment” by our courts under some conditions. Should the death penalty be considered “cruel and unusual punishment” and eliminated from the range of punishment at our disposal? It is very tempting to advise the use of the death penalty when exposed to the egregiousness of the worst crimes members of society commit against each other. How can someone argue in favor of sparing an individual who has been convicted of a series of brutal murders and attacks? On the other hand, when we examine the practical application of the death penalty, we find some unexpected elements that make us question the acceptance of the death penalty in the inexact world of the American justice system. For example, we find that a vastly disproportionate number of those sentenced to death are minorities. We also find a link between the chance of a death sentence and the financial ability to hire competent council. We even occasionally find that advances in scientific analysis, most notably DNA testing, prove the innocence of people erroneously convicted of crimes and sentenced to death. [C]onvicted killer Larry Allen Hayes…lethal injection marked the first time since capital punishment resumed in Texas 21 years ago that a white person was executed for killing a black person. Mr. Hays was the 310th inmate executed in Texas since 1982. [As of 9/15/03] State records date to 1924…The last time Texas killed a white for killing a black may have been in 1854, when James Wilson was executed in Tyler County in East Texas for the death of another white man's favorite slave, meaning the punishment essentially was for a property crime. Source: Dallas Morning News -- "Man's execution was a racial first for Texas" -- by Michael Graczyk -- 9/15/03 The conclusion must be two fold. In theory, the death penalty is justifiable in cases that are particularly heinous and violent. However in practice, our system of justice has demonstrated unequivocally that it simply has not evolved to a point where it is capable of administering the ultimate punishment fairly and evenly. Administering the death penalty should not be an option for the American justice system in this era. |
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| Comments | Contributor | Date Submitted |
| A civilized society has no reason to continue using the death penalty. Those who say it works as a deterrent obviously aren't paying attention. If it worked as a deterrent, why do people keep killing other people? | Linda Denton |
10/13/2004 |
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