The first known execution in the territory now known as the United States of America was of Daniel Frank, put to death in 1622 in the Colony of Virginia for the crime of theft. Since then the death penalty has almost always been a feature of the criminal justice system, first in the American colonies and then, after independence, in the U.S.
But, what exactly deserves the death penalty? As stated above, Daniel Frank was a thief. Today murderers are sentenced to death and often they escape this punishment. Throughout history, capital punishment has been viewed as the justifiable thing to do to those who committed particularly heinous crimes. However it recently has become a particularly disputed and controversial method of punishment.
In 1967, in a 5 to 4 decision by the Supreme Court, the death penalty was ruled to be ‘unconstitutional’ based on the 8th Amendment which reads, “Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted.” Eventually, in 1972, the Supreme Court reversed its earlier decision and again allowed capital punishment. It later held up its ruling in 1977 with certain conditions.
I personally have heard and read several arguments against capital punishment. These are a few of the arguments:
Argument 1: Capital Punishment doesn’t deter murder.
Response: If we got rid of capital punishment for this reason we’d also have to get rid of the prison system. They don’t seem to deter crime either. Also consider this:
During the years leading up to 1967 the number of executions decreased whilst the number of murders increased. In 1960, there were 56 executions in the USA and 9,140 murders. By 1964, when there were only 15 executions, the number of murders had risen to 9,250. In 1969, there were no executions and 14,590 murders, and 1975, after six more years without executions, 20,510 murders occurred rising to 23,040 in 1980 after only two executions since 1976!
Conclusion: Between 1960 and 1980 the number of murders skyrocketed from 9,960 to 23,040. From 1995 to 2000, executions averaged 71 per year, a 21,000 percent increase over the 1966-1980 period. The murder rate dropped from a high of 10.2 (per 100,000) in 1980 to 5.7 in 1999. This was a 44% reduction. The murder rate is now at its lowest level since 1966.
Argument 2: Capital punishment perpetuates racism.
Response: Just look at these statistics and you’ll think otherwise:
Between 1977 and 1999 374 whites were executed and 213 blacks and finally 11 others were executed.
In 1948, the United Nations adopted the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which is a pledge among nations to promote fundamental rights as the foundation of freedom, justice, and peace in the world. The political elite in Europe often condemn the US as human rights violators since we still use the death penalty on murderers, which they insist is a violation of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. But they couldn't be more wrong.
Those who advocate the end of the death penalty interpret from Article 3 in that Declaration to proclaim each person's right to protection from deprivation of life, especially murderers! And they also point to Article 5, which states that no one shall be subjected to cruel or degrading punishment. From this, those who advocate the end of the death penalty self-righteously declare that the death penalty violates both of these rights. But in fact, nowhere in that declaration is the death penalty specifically condemned as a human rights violation!
Some will claim there are alternatives to the death penalty such as life without parole. But what makes you think they will not kill guards or other inmates in prison? Also, it would keep the prison population down if murders were executed. (Which may sound a little bit like Jonathan Swift suggesting that the Irish sell their children to the English and their Anglo-Saxon landlords as delicacies.)
Numerous prisoners, upon release for murder, murder again. Take the example of Kenneth McDuff who, after three killings was released and killed nine, possibly more people in Texas.
Another clichéd argument is the question: "Why do we kill people to show that killing people is wrong?" That two wrongs do not make a right, therefore, executions are equivalent to murder. First of all, the term murder is specifically defined in any dictionary as the unlawful killing of a person with malice and aforethought. Capital punishment is legal and a form of punishment.
Some will argue that the innocent are also killed by this practice. Nothing worth having doesn’t come with a risk! After all, far, far more innocent lives have been taken by convicted murderers than the supposedly 23 innocents mistakenly executed this century. In fact, there is absolutely no evidence that the death penalty in this country has ever executed even one innocent in the past century!
The Biblical Argument in Support of the Death penalty:
"He who strikes a man so that he dies shall surely be put to death." -Exodus 21:12
"Moreover you shall take no ransom for the life of a murderer who is guilty of death, but he shall surely be put to death." -Numbers 35:31
"So you shall not pollute the land where you are; for blood defiles the land, and no atonement can be made for the land, for the blood that is shed on it, except by the blood of him who shed it." -Numbers 35:33
This is religious evidence that one need not be God to exact a fitting punishment for the crime of murder. Not only that, but the Bible also condones the death penalty for rapists, (Deut. 22:25) sodomy, (Lev. 18:22, 20:13) fornication, (Lev. 21:9) (Deut. 22:21-24) perjury, (Zech. 5:4) kidnapping, (Ex.21:16, Deut. 24:7) witchcraft, (Ex. 22:18) for striking or cursing father or mother, (Ex. 21:15,17, Lev. 20:9) rebellious children, (Deut. 21:18-21) theft, (Zech. 5:3,4) blasphemy, (Lev. 24:11-14,16,23) Sabbath desecration, (Ex. 35:2, Num. 15:32-36) propagating false doctrines, (Deut. 13:1-10) refusing to abide by the decision of court, (Deut. 17:12) even homosexuals. (Lev. 20:13) So whoever uses the Bible to condemn capital punishment risks hypocrisy. However, Christians today do not accept the death penalty for all these cases which shows the change in values of cultures.
