The death penalty has been become a very contentious debate in recent years. The recent death of George Floyd combined with increased prevalence of school shootings have called into question the use of the death penalty as a deterrent to unwarranted behavior. Likewise, the prevalence of gun related crime that permeates the news along with access to heavily violent media, has desensitized society as to the adverse consequences of death in society. Even common video game titles such as Call of Duty, Halo, and Battlefield have now normalized what once was considered heavily inappropriate gaming environments. All of these influences and more have contributed to a spirited debate around the death penalty, it merits and its usage (Craig, 1999).
On one end of the argument proponents for the death penalty site its ability to be used as a deterrent to would be criminals. Likewise, many proponents site that it provides the victims of the criminal with a small semblance of closure and vindication. In addition, the death penalty has historically been used as a means of negotiation with criminals and offenders. By having the death penalty as a viable alternative and option, certain criminals are willing to cooperate with law-enforcement to avoid this punishment. This ultimately allows law enforcement to better mitigate further
Finally, supporters of capital punishment believe it showcases the basic tenet of human civilization in that Bad things happen to those who deserve it. The death penalty, supporters argue, helps to reinforce and instill confidence is the fundamental underpinnings of life. Without it, supporters believe society would unravel as confidence in the underlying themes of justice would unravel (Stephen, 1998).
The other side of the argument are those who believe that capital punishment should be abolished. The first and most often cited reason behind the death penalty...
…used for much more productive endeavors that ultimately lower the tax burden society must pay to maintain an inefficient capital punishment system. These endeavors can ultimately provide a means to help rehabilitate criminals to be more productive members of society. At the very least murders can be used as means of helping to deter other younger individuals from criminal activity. Likewise, the death penalty and the overall infrastructure supporting it has the possibility to killing innocent people who should not have otherwise been killed. This ultimately undermines the criminal justice system causing those who have been wrongly convicted to die. This also has rippling effects on the individuals family, spouse and
children. Finally the death penalty simply is immoral from a human rights perspective. It does not provide any closure to the victims of murders and in many cases makes matters worse as the overall
sentencing and conviction process is so long, time consuming and inefficient…
