Ethical Issues of Capital Punishment
Ethics - Death Penalty
Capital punishment raises many ethical issues. In principle, it is the ultimate application of Kantian ethics in so far as they justify rules that benefit society as a whole at the expense of the individual. What are the implications of virtue ethics if the motive behind capital punishment is retribution rather than the protection of the innocent?
Whereas the need to protect law abiding members of society justifies the removal of violent criminals from society through their imprisonment, capital punishment raises much narrower issues of comparative rights as well.
Specifically, what is the basis of the right of society to impose punishment beyond that associated with the minimum necessary effect on the criminal? Is capital punishment justified by Kantian principles if it is cheaper to society than providing for the lifelong care of violent criminals? What if it is only very slightly less expensive?
Furthermore, if capital punishment is ethically justified, what other ethical obligations apply to its implementation?
In that regard, capital punishment also raises ethical issues unique to American Society. Various objections to capital punishment hinge on religious beliefs. On the other hand, the American justice system does not recognize religious principles.
Capital punishment also raises numerous ethical issues pertaining to the likelihood of errors in its administration. Lethal injection, for example, causes excruciating pain and a slow death from prolonged suffocation instead of instantaneous death if it is performed incorrectly. If suffering of this nature were considered torture when inflicted purposely, what incidence of error would be enough to prohibit lethal injection altogether on ethical grounds? Finally, does the prospect of erroneous conviction or disproportionate application to the poor or to racial minorities undermine all the other ethical justifications for capital punishment?
References
Rosenstand, N. (2008). The Moral of the Story: An Introduction to Ethics. New York: McGraw-Hill
