Death Penalty essay

The question of the death penalty has been already discussed for a long time. There are as many supporters of the death penalty as opponents of this form of punishment; and there almost no indifferent people to this issue. Capital punishment is one of the most ancient forms of punishment. Initially, it emerged during the implementation of the principle of retaliation: “Eye for eye, tooth for tooth.” According to this principle, punishment for causing death of another person is the death penalty. In addition, many societies had the custom of blood feud, which was replaced by the death penalty carried out on behalf of the state.

As it is written in the article “The death penalty in the United States and worldwide”, historically, execution has served as a significant form of punishment for criminal behavior and for deviance from social norms. The capital punishment has been used for centuries in North America to punish murder, alleged witchcrafts and some other kinds of crimes (Schaefer, 2009). Nowadays less than a half of all nations worldwide allow the death penalty. It is known that in 2006 at least 1.591 people in 25 countries were executed (Schaefer, 2009). According to the organization “Amnesty International”, in 2008 the highest number of executions occurred in China (1718). In 2008, the number of executions in Iran was 346, in Saudi Arabia – 102, in the U.S. – 37, in Pakistan – 36, in Iraq – 34. Totally, 2 thousand 390 people in 25 countries were sent to death in the year of 2008. Discussion of the death penalty is a public debate involving a wide range of academic, political, social and religious leaders, organizations and social movements (Bovee 145).

Arguments in favor and against the death penalty can be found in religious texts (“eye for an eye”, “thou shalt not kill”). Different politicians and public figures have different points of view and different arguments to prove them right.

The question of the death penalty has been already discussed for a long time. There are as many supporters of the death penalty as opponents of this form of punishment; and there almost no indifferent people to this issue. This research paper supports the idea that death penalty is necessary for our society.

Arguments for death penalty:

• Protecting society;
• Economic inequities of life imprisonment;
• Revenge;

The death penalty as an act of humanism (Naldi 1991, 374).

Supporting the death penalty it’s worth recalling that:

1. The death penalty brings harmony to the well-known principle of law in general – the principle of justice. If the thief should be imprisoned, the murder must be buried in the ground. Otherwise it’s impossible. There even thelawsof classical logicare notviolated. Justice requires the establishment of a similar regime for two parties: the victim and the murder. What we have in fact: victim is rotting in the ground and the guilty is just sitting on the bunk and reading Bible, living on victim’s relatives and close people funds. Itis notin good conscience, not appropriate for human beings.
2. The death penalty has the function of warning and preventing commitment of the similar crimes in the future. It’s also clear that a murder that was shot off his head or burnt on the electrical chair will never do the same again. If to make the penalty public, to sell tickets and to broadcast them on TV, there are few people who will not seriously take thought before committing anything like that.
3. The death penalty has the function of retribution. Of course, it will not help to return the victim but it will be easier for everyone if the murder is also killed. It will be easier for victim’s relatives, fist of all. They know for sure how, where and how many times the criminal should be penalized. There is no place for liberalism. Criminal’s death, his own death and nothing else can make the shaky balance between good and evil stable again.

The death penalty is certainly a deterrent, restriction.  It may be considered from this point of view as the means for society protection. Many people believe that penalty has only one purpose that is the crimes prevention which is possible in the form of the physical retention (for criminals) or mental resistance to the crime (for other members of society). It’s not expedient to abolish the death penalty because our society is still unable to opposite to crimes because of its immature common morals and national morale, because of uncertainty in our country, nation and ourselves. Neither society nor countries in general are ready for this. Life sentence can be the alternative for the death penalty but there is the problem with places for convicts in some countries.

Nowadays more than 100 countries, including Burundi, Angola, Zambia, Syria, UAE, Egypt and 38 states of the USA, apply the death penalty for the ordinary crimes. This penalty is the most intensively applied in South Africa, China and Iraq. At least 1 146 persons were executed in 28 countries during 2003 (Rogers 2008, 145). Another 2 756 persons were sentenced to death in 63 countries. These figures only reflect known cases. The true figures are much higher, of course (Philip 2011, 13).

In 2003, 84% of penalties that became known for public were made in China, Iran, the USA and Vietnam. In China by the end of the year at least 726 persons have been executed according to the incomplete and limited information (Rogers 2008, 143). There is the reason to believe that this figure is much higher in fact: in March 2004, a Senior Representative of the Legislative Authority of China stated that about 10 000 of persons are annually executed in China. At least 108 persons were executed in Iran, 65 – in the USA, at least 64 – in Vietnam (Philip 2011, 13).

There are a lot of supporters of the death penalty all around the world. The death penalty has especially intensive discussion in the USA as each state has its own attitude to this issue. Thus, as the BBC informs, this kind of penalty remains very popular in the USA in spite of the recent death penalty abolition in the state of Illinois. Public attitude depends on the location for the interview. For instance, in Utah that is one of the most conservative states, 79% of its population supported the death penalty, and just 16% of population declaimed that penalty. The situation is similar to that one which had the place in 2003 when the other interview showed that there were 78% of the state’s population supporting the death penalty and 17% declaimed that. Moreover, a lot of respondents (63%) consider the death penalty to be applied not as often as it is needed in the USA (Roe 2005, 14).

In Connecticut, which is more liberal state, there are less of supporters of the death penalty. According to the interview made by the Kuinnipiek University t, 67% of registered voters support the death penalty (Roe 2005, 16). The public attitude often varies according to the variations of the crime rates. Sometimes it changes dramatically under the influence of just one, but particularly brutal crime. For instance, in 2005 only 59% of the Connecticut state residents supported the death penalty but two years later, local authorities arrested criminals Steven Hayes and Joshua Komisarjevsky and accused them that they broke into a house to rob, tied up the owners and started a fire before leaving. The mistress of the house, Jennifer Hawke-Petit and her teenage daughter Hayley and Michaela burned alive.

Public attitude in Connecticut changed in favor of the death penalty. 74% in contact to 21% of respondents support the idea of the death penalty to be applied to Hayes who has been already convicted. If Komisarjevsky is convicted during the impending trial, 72% of residents in contrast to 22% would like to see him executed. As for me, I think that such murderers as Steven Hayes and Joshua Komisarjevsky deserve the death penalty. The brutality, which they committed the crime with, must not go unpunished. Although the amount of states that abolish the death penalty is constantly growing, in general the attitude to it remains almost the same. Now 36 states of the USA allow sentencing convicted person to death.

At the end of the last year Gallup’s interview, whose results traditionally considered being the most competent, showed that the death penalty is supported by 64% of Americans while only 29% declaim it. Almost the same rate was observed throughout the last decade (Schaefer 2009, 176). Gallup has been asking about attitude to the death penalty since 1936 when it was supported by 59% in contrast to 38% of American respondents that declaimed it. (Schaefer 2009, 175).  In 1966, the popularity of the death penalty has fallen to the lowest point at the moment – it was supported by 47% of respondents, and against – 42%. Death penalty rating was steadily increasing with the rising level of crimes till finally it reached dizzy rate in 80% (Schaefer 2009, 177).

Other countries also supported the death penalty, for instance, Russia is among them. According to the All-Russian Public Opinion Research Centre, 79% of Russians stand for the death penalty for rapists of minors (Baumgartner 2009, 1604).In addition, 65% stand for the death penalty for terrorists and 60% – for committing premeditated murder. Citizens have the most negative reaction in regard to the death penalty application to individuals that incriminated in corruption (66%), treason (65%), and commitment the armed robbery (62%) (Baumgartner 2009, 1606).

Arguing about the death penalty, weighing the pros and cons, I come to the conclusion that the death penalty is needed to penalize for serious crimes. This particular form of punishment must be applied to all serial killers. Considering any case of the death penalty applied to the serial killers (Theodore Robert Bundy, Westley Allan Dodd, Andrei Chikatilo, Margie Velma Barfield, Rhonda Bell Martin, Anna Marie Hahn, David Simelane and other), I support all of them.

If to consider Bundy’s case, I support the decision of the court. Theodore Robert Bundy is a famous American serial killer, rapist, kidnapper, and necrophile. He escaped from country jails two times till he finally was arrested in February, 1978. Bundy denied his guilt for years but eventually he admitted to more than 30 murders although actually the total amount of his victims remains unknown. An amount from 26 to more than 100 murders is called. Bundy was convicted of dozens of murders and executed with the help of the electric chair for the last of them in Florida (Weekes 2003, 1073-1074).

The other example is the case of David Simelane. He is considered to be the bloodiest serial killer of the Kingdom of Swaziland and possibly the whole Africa. He has at least 28 murders on his conscience. Murders had continued since the late 90’s of the last century until 2001 when Simelane was arrested after anonymous statement to the police. During the process of investigation he brought investigators to the mass grave where 45 corpses were found, including pregnant women. Eventually he was charged in 34 murders, 28 of which were proved in court. A jury admitted David Simelane guilty in 28 murders and the Judge sentenced him to the death penalty in 9 days.

I believe that the death penalty is an extreme but necessary measure. There are criminals that have not any hope to be reclaimed and they cannot cause a pity to normal person – serial killers, sadists… The death penalty is the only one decision in such cases. Considering about the life sentence as an alternative to the death penalty, it’s worth reminding the cost of the dangerous special criminal keeping in prison including the payment for the prison guard and thinking that maybe it would be better to give this money to individuals who really need it instead of saving life of the person who has lost his right to be called a human being. I support the death penalty referring to serial killers because it serves as a measure of retribution and prevention. Criminals must be punished and the criminals who committed serious crimes and take a lot of lives – should be sentenced to the death penalty.