It is believed by many, particularly those of religious persuasion that this type of punishment is inhumane and the practice should be abolished. I personally disagree with this opinion for several reasons.
As Stated above, death penalty is generally ordered where the crime is a serious offence such as murder. The courts have generally seen their task of fitting the punishment to the crime perpetrated. Thus the sentence should adequately reflect the revulsion felt by the victims and citizen. Sentencing should not only be appropriate bu should deter the wrong doer from repeating the offence. As a matter of fact it should serve as a deterrence, retribution, rehabilitation, resititution, incapacitation and denunciation.
Crime has become so prevalent in our society that people are no crippled with fear. Fear of being robbed, raped and murdered. In societies that have abolished the death penalty, prison cells are over crowded and many of them are repeat offenders who, despite their incarceration are still actively involved in orchestrating criminal offences. It therefore means that imprisonment is not as effective as it ought to be. If many of these offenders were given death penalty then the number of crimes recorded would be less. The aim of any government is to ensure that the citizens are safe and if they live in constant fear then it means that the government has not achieved its objective, at least one. In addition to this, it is tax payers' money that is being used to finance the exorbitant budget that these penal institutions present year to year.
Imagine my child being murdered by a serial killer and I must finance his expenses. Ironic or preposterous, this should not be!
This topic propelled extensive research for arguments in favor and against the topic. I noticed that majority of the persons, who wrote, agreeing to the topic, mentioned that death penalty should be abolished because the Bible said so. This led me to go back to the Bible. I was amazed at what I found, in the Old Testament; the Lord said that it is okay to give a man Capital punishment if he has committed serious crime. Then in the New Testament he said we should not take the life of another man but if that man disobeys the laws of his country then he shall be punished equally according to what he had done.
Capital punishment is not an act we wish to place on a single soul, but it is the best way to keep the killer out of society and prevent any further murders. Does the death penalty deter crime? There is no concrete evidence of either positive or negative effect. But this does not mean it would not help lower the crime rate. We need to understand that the best way to prevent any possible murders in the future is not let the killer walk free. Death penalty allows us to see the seriousness of a crime and the value of life.
The death penalty is irreversible. Once a person is killed, then he cant be brought back alive. For a criminal, its ok. But what if an innocent is hanged??? Is hand-for-hand, eye-for-eye an approach of humans???? America, India and many other countries have death penalty, but I dont think it deters the murderers or rapists. Shouldn't circumstantial evidences be considered? What if someone finds his/her spouse cheating and kill them in rage? Will they become equal to the rapists and terrorists???
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