Use the information below and the essay about the Death Penalty. Use the sources and find data and research. Please follow the rubric .
Running head: DEATH PENALTY
DEATH PENALTY 2
Death Penalty
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Section one
Do you think the death penalty an effective punishment to deter crimes in the United States?
Introduction
Death penalty is an issue that has always been debated in America with questions of if it is or not the most cost effective, justifiable, morally right and the most asked question is if death penalty is a deterrent for heinous crimes. Most people in America are so much against the death penalty while some people also happen to support it even those that are based in other countries. After a further investigation was conducted, it was determined that death penalty doesn’t serve any purpose in deterring crimes. Capital punishment is neither justifiable nor morally right. The research paper covers the following sections:
Background of the study
Capital punishment is also referred to as death penalty. According to Oxford Dictionaries, it can be defined to as the legally authorized killing of a person to act as punishment for a certain crime. It is that act of executing or killing someone who was proven to be guilty of a serious offence. Some of the crimes that can lead to someone being sentenced to death include murder or robbery (Anderson, Dyson & Brooks,2000). Courts normally view the capital punishment as the ultimate punishment and there is no repel from death. There are various methods of capital punishment and the most widely used method is lethal injection. The lethal method was created with the aim of making the death penalty to look more humane. Since this method was introduced in December 7, 1982, over 1000 prisoners have faced execution through lethal injection. Other methods of capital punishment include the lethal gas, hanging, firing squad as well as electrocution. Some of these methods are still being used in extreme cases in other countries although firing squad and hanging have not been used for a long time now. There however exists other alternatives to death punishment among them imprisonment where by the prisoner could be imprisoned for life with the possibility of parole and they could also be denied parole. Being put in jail for life is as harsh as the death penalty but at least it does not violate the rights of humans. Violation of human rights is just one way with the death penalty as life is taken out of a person without their will.
Problem statement
Death penalty is a violation of human rights and a part form that when looked at deeply it raises spiritual debate, court cases as well as the role of DNA evidence. Some aspects that are related to death penalty are very cruel and also unusual punishment for example the firing squad. Some culture back in the days would also stone prisoners to death. Discrimination, deterrent as well as due processes are are also issues that are presses on highly. Instead of death penalty, there would be other better means of punishment such as life imprisonment. Culpability, scripture, justice and innocence are also other issues that are related to death penalty.
Purpose statement
The purpose of the statement is to discuss on death penalties and the consequences that it has on the victims. The research also discusses the pros in any and the cons of death penalties and also touches on better methods of punishment that would better than death penalty. Scripture are two issues that are recognized by the citizens. If killing is a sin, then why would someone kill to punish the sinner. Some prisoners are even wrongfully convicted and this and they face death meaning that they lose innocent lives without any fault. Nobody has the right to take away life from someone. Many of the inmates are usually released from death rows due to wrongful convictions but those who are not lucky are wrongfully executed.
Research questions
Is the death penalty as an effective method of punishment to deter future crimes in the United States?
Are there better methods of punishment that can replace death penalty?
What are the effects of death penalty on the family of the victim?
Hypothesis
Death penalty is not the most effective method to deter future crimes in United States of America since there are better methods of punishment besides execution. Some other ways of punishment include life imprisonment with parole as well as life imprisonment without parole and these ways are way better of than killing. The methods used for execution causes torture to the person who is facing the penalty. For instance shooting and stoning to death. Death penalty is a violation of human rights as the person facing the penalty is denied the right to live. Death penalty has negative effects on both the period facing the penalty and the family of the victim at large. Death penalty is known to cause psychological on the family of the victim especially if it is one of the parents, the children are left traumatized. This happens especially if the victim faced wrongful execution.
Conceptual perspectives
Death penalty violates human rights. Every human is entitled to the rights to life, liberty as well as the pursuit of happiness (Schabas, 2002). Capital punishment takes away these rights off a person. Placing the life of a person in the hands of another person is a way of violating the rights. According the constitution, no one has the right to decide the fate of another person in such drastic ways as death. Death penalty also violates the rights of human dignity as it is so humiliating to be mutilated in the hands of someone. The government is wrong for capital punishment since they consider it as pre-meditated murder. Capital punishment is with no doubts murder. It is the act of killing or executing someone. The cat is also pre-meditated as it is carefully discussed before the final decision is made. Several aspects are discussed before someone is given capital punishment.
Biases
Pre-meditated murder is the crime of wrongfully as well as intentionally causing death of a person after rationally considering the timing or the methods of it. They are both about the same. Capital punishment and pre-meditated murder may not sound the same but the two are about the same action and their definitions too sound the same.
Significance of the study
The study is aimed at convincing the government of U.S. that capital punishment is not the best way of punishing heinous crimes. It is a violation of human rights. The research also aims at coming up with other better methods of punishment rather than death penalty such are life sentence with or without parole. By reaching against death punishment, human life is protected and their rights too are protected.
Delimitations
The study of the deter of crimes is covered only by the United States of American. It covers the local, state, and federal laws enforced by law enforcement. It’s a study to determine if the death penalty is only used for people satisfaction.
Limitations
There is a limit to this study because some death penalty cases wasn’t reported in the 1900s and we will never have a true number of death penalty cases in America
General overview of the research design
The death penalty in America used to practice on certain individuals. The federal level of the judiciary has limited the use of the death penalty
Summary of section one
Section one has discussed on the reasons why death penalty is not the best way to deter heinous crimes in U.S. in fact it a violation of human rights as a person is denied their rights to live. The life of a person is put in hands of another person which is very wrong since a person have the rights to live and enjoy life. Death penalty does no t serve justice. Taking a life of a person when a life has been lost is instead vengeance. Section one discusses other options to death penalty which are sentence for life without parole which is as humiliating as death sentence. Pre-meditated murder is the crime of causing death to a person after discussing about it. It is not different from death penalty as the two lead to killing and life is taken out of the person.
Final papers
Section two
Review of the literature
Deterrence is the primary source of debate in regards to the death penalty. Some say that it is effective while others argue that the use of the death penalty as a deterrent is based on mere assumption. This assumption is that it is effective at preventing the future act of murder by someone that may simply be contemplating such a heinous act. Gerber and Johnson are firm believers that the death penalty is an archaic form of punishment that should be abolished. They present their case in their paper by supporting, through evidence, that capital punishment is not a deterrent but an ineffective method of controlling crime and that the United States should follow the lead of other countries which have already abolished the use of the death penalty (Gerber & Johnson, 2007). The authors of this article are not alone in their presentation of ideas and supporting evidence. Schabas states that the death penalty is simply government approved murder which has been a part of society for far too long and that the movement toward the end of the death penalty is rapidly gaining steam (Schabas, 2002). Still others believe that the death penalty should remain a part of the criminal justice machine but that modifications of the process need to be made to ensure its legality and proper use. Some say that the effectiveness of the death penalty to serve as a deterrent should not be what is question. These supporters say that the ability of jurors to agree upon the guilt of an individual, through the presentation of evidence, must be addressed. This is often referred to as the standard of proof. Lillquist sums up this idea by stating that it is not the standard of proof which should be new, rather the current standard of proof should be more adequately transferred to the members of the jury which will determine whether the death penalty should be given as a sentence (Lillquist, 2005).
Conceptual framework
Regardless of the approach one takes there is evidence which both supports and disputes the ethical nature of the death penalty. Keane does an excellent job looking at this from the perspective of an individual which has a firm grasp on the ethical understanding of the use of the death penalty. He states that the support of or disagreement with the death penalty is not just a matter of choice on the part of an individual rather it must be understood that there is no right or wrong solution to the argument about corporal punishment (Keane, 2008). There is always going to be an argument in support of or against the use of the death penalty. This is simply the nature of the human condition which makes us all unique. The key to proving or disproving the ethical nature of this form of punishment is to compare and contrast every factor based solely on the evidence provided without the interference of personal opinion. Simply abolishing the death penalty has not proven to cause an increase or decrease in murder rates. On the other hand there is evidence which shows the effectiveness and ineffectiveness of the current use of the death penalty. It is all a matter of perspective and based on the evidence that an individual wishes to use to support their belief. Personal belief must be taken out of the equation if one wishes to truly examine the ethical or unethical nature of the death penalty. Only then can we hope to come to an unbiased conclusion.
Summary of the literature
Luckily, there are adversaries against the death penalty that aim to educate citizens on the matter. Amnesty International USA is a corporation that fights for basic human rights with a strong belief of humanity. They cover worldwide issues, building campaigns to help each and conquering most of them. Amnesty has a host of information on its site that is a contributing factor to the argument against capital punishment. There are simply facts and figures configured by Amnesty International to educate citizens on the death penalty. These facts are based off of the occurrence of the death penalty. The statistics discuss connections of the capital punishment with mental illness, race, arbitraries, and deterrence. It also states the evaluation of cost and the innocence of those facing the death penalty. They even host a campaign dealing with the abolishment of the death penalty. The campaign gives facts about the many cases, scheduled executions, and campaign resources.
References
Anderson, J. F., Dyson, L., & Brooks Jr., W. (2000). Alabama prison chain gangs: Reverting to archaic punishment to reduce crime and discipline offenders. Western Journal of Black Studies, 24(1), 9.
Gerber, R. J., & Johnson, J. M. (2007). The top ten death penalty myths: the politics of crime control. Westport, Conn: Greenwood Publishing Group. Retrieved from EBSCOhost.
Jackson, B. A. (1995). Is the alabama prison system’s return to the chain gang unfair to blacks? Jet, 88, 12. Retrieved from https://search-proquest-com.ezproxy2.apus.edu/docview/199959108?accountid=8289
Keane, M. (2008). Response to open peer commentaries on “the ethical ‘elephant’ in the death penalty ‘room”‘. The American Journal of Bioethics, 8(10), W5-W6. doi:10.1080/15265160802565689
Lillquist, E. (2005). Absolute certainty and the death penalty. American Criminal Law Review, 42(1), 45. Retrieved from ProQuest.
Miller, V. M. L. (2012). Hard labor and hard time: Florida’s “”sunshine prison”” and chain gangs. Gainesville: University Press of Florida. doi:10.5744/florida/9780813039855.001.0001
Schabas, W. (2002). The abolition of the death penalty in international law. Cambridge University Press. Retrieved from ProQuest.
Sections 4 and 5 Activities Guidelines
Perform the following activities in Sections 4 and 5 of your research paper:
Section 4
Data Presentation and Analysis
Provide data you collected and its analysis while doing your literature review and based on the description you gave about data analysis (refer to your data collection and analysis procedure in Section 3). As a clue, how many literatures on your research topic did you review? How of them supported the proposition put forward in your section one? how many did not support your proposition but helped to understand the divergent views held on the phenomenon you researched on? After your data presentation and analysis, provide a summary of Section 4 and a link sentence to Section 5.
Section 5
Summary of Findings, Recommendations, and conclusion
