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Capital Punishment

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Capital Punishment
Capital Punishment “An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth,” is a quote that is presented intermittently when the discussion of capital punishment is conferred. This quote comes from Hammurabi’s Code which is one of the most ancient written law-abiding documents found in the world (Stockdale). It states that if a person commits a crime, for example, murder, the culprit shall receive the equal of the crime; which in this case would be execution. Despite being a popular kind of punishment in ancient times, in today’s world this method of capital punishment is argued extensively and infinitely. In the United States there are two extremes of the spectrum concerning the use of the capital punishment: people in favor of the death penalty and those against it. Both sides of the argument regarding capital punishment in the United States have coherent arguments and even facts to prove their position on the issue. People who oppose the capital punishment state several reasons and explanations why not to support the sentence. It being a cruel and unusual punishment is one of the primary reasons given when defending their position on the subject. Thirty-seven of the thirty-eight states who implement the capital punishment into their law of justice use death by lethal ejection as the preferred manner to execute the offender. Death by lethal ejection became the standard because the victim experiences a “medically sterile aurora of peace” before death and it is more “humane” compared to its ghastly predecessors: the electric chair and the gas chamber (Hughes 535).
Most lethal injections consist of a three-drug dose. This procedure can last up to seven minutes from start to finish. First, via intravenous lines, sodium thiopental is inserted into the body’s system. It is an anesthetic that numbs the entire body and that only last a couple of minutes under normal conditions. Next, pancuronium bromide is injected, paralyzing all of the body’s muscles, including facial


Cited: Dezhbakhsh, Hashem and Shepherd, Joanna M. “The Deterrent Effect of Capital Punishment: Evidence from a ‘Judicial Experiment.’” July 2003. PDF file. “Does the Death Penalty Deter Crime?” ProCon. 13 Jan. 2009. Web. 8 Feb. 2013. Hughes, Jason D. "The Tri-Chemical Cocktail: Serene Brutality." Albany Law Review 72.2 (2009): 527-564. Academic Search Complete. Web. 8 Feb. 2013. Lansford, Larence M., Martin L. Griffin, and Stowe, Charles R. B. "Of Mice And Men: Lega Issues For The Lethal Injection Of Animals And Humans." Journal Of Law, Ethics & Intellectual Property 2.1 (2009): 1-11. Academic Search Complete. Web. 8 Feb. 2013. Stockdale, Nancy L. “Hammurabi’s Code.” World History Sources. n.d. Web. 17 Feb. 2013.
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