Death Penalty Research
Death Penalty
Ashleigh Asbury
POLS 222
American Government & American Politics
December 6, 2012
Running Head: Death Penalty (Asbury)
The death penalty, or capital punishment, has been around for centuries. Since before the United States were states, capital punishment has been something that settlers used to punish people who have done crimes that were unheard of. In the Massachusetts Bay Colony, thirteen crimes warranted the death penalty. These crimes included, idolatry which is to idolize something or to blindly worship an object, witchcraft, blasphemy, rape, statutory rape, kidnapping, perjury in a trial involving a possible death sentence, rebellion, murder, assault in sudden anger, adultery, and sodomy (Baird, 103).
These crimes were enforced by the English Penal Code, which is the criminal code of England that has existed since the early 1600’s. The Penal Code gave the limitations and the allowances for what qualified and what still qualifies for Capital Punishment and what does not. Even then, with fourteen enforceable capital offences listed, each colony varied in what they punished their people for. For example, Quakers had much milder laws and the Royal Charter of South Jersey did not permit capital punishment for any reason and there were no executions in that area until 1691. It was not until 1682 with the William Penn Grant Act that the death penalty was limited to only treason and murder. Even with this act in place, most colonies continued to follow the British Code. When people were tried for these crimes, they were accompanied by the appropriate biblical quotation that went with the crime they committed thus justifying the capital punishment (Baird, 104).
Even though the Founding Fathers of this country commonly accepted the death penalty, there were still many early Americans that opposed capital punishment, similar to today’s world.
During the late 18th century, Dr. Benjamin Rush, who was considered to be the
Ashleigh Asbury
POLS 222
American Government & American Politics
December 6, 2012
Running Head: Death Penalty (Asbury)
The death penalty, or capital punishment, has been around for centuries. Since before the United States were states, capital punishment has been something that settlers used to punish people who have done crimes that were unheard of. In the Massachusetts Bay Colony, thirteen crimes warranted the death penalty. These crimes included, idolatry which is to idolize something or to blindly worship an object, witchcraft, blasphemy, rape, statutory rape, kidnapping, perjury in a trial involving a possible death sentence, rebellion, murder, assault in sudden anger, adultery, and sodomy (Baird, 103).
These crimes were enforced by the English Penal Code, which is the criminal code of England that has existed since the early 1600’s. The Penal Code gave the limitations and the allowances for what qualified and what still qualifies for Capital Punishment and what does not. Even then, with fourteen enforceable capital offences listed, each colony varied in what they punished their people for. For example, Quakers had much milder laws and the Royal Charter of South Jersey did not permit capital punishment for any reason and there were no executions in that area until 1691. It was not until 1682 with the William Penn Grant Act that the death penalty was limited to only treason and murder. Even with this act in place, most colonies continued to follow the British Code. When people were tried for these crimes, they were accompanied by the appropriate biblical quotation that went with the crime they committed thus justifying the capital punishment (Baird, 104).
Even though the Founding Fathers of this country commonly accepted the death penalty, there were still many early Americans that opposed capital punishment, similar to today’s world.
During the late 18th century, Dr. Benjamin Rush, who was considered to be the
Cited: "8th Amendment Legal Definition." Thefreeedictionary.com. N.P., n.d. Web. 4 Dec. 2012. <http://legal-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com/p/8th%20Amendment>. "Costs of the Death Penalty." Death Penalty Information Center. N.P., 2012. Web. 04 Dec. 2012. <http://www.deathpenaltyinfo.org/costs-death-penalty>. "Crimes Punishable by the Death Penalty." Death Penalty Information Center. N.P., 2012. Web. 04 Dec. 2012. <http://www.deathpenaltyinfo.org/crimes-punishable-death-penalty>. "Death Penalty ProCon.org." Death Penalty ProCon.org. N.P., 13 Apr. 2009. Web. 04 Dec. 2012. <http://deathpenalty.procon.org/>. "Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution." Thefreedictionary.com. N.P., n.d. Web. 4 Dec. 2012. <http://encyclopedia.thefreedictionary.com/p/14%20Amendment>. "Part I: History of the Death Penalty." Death Penalty Information Center. N.P., n.d. Web. 04 Dec. 2012. <http://www.deathpenaltyinfo.org/part-i-history-death-penalty>. "Part II: History of the Death Penalty." Death Penalty Information Center. N.P., n.d. Web. 04 Dec. 2012. <http://www.deathpenaltyinfo.org/part-ii-history-death-penalty>. "Race of Death Row Inmates Executed Since 1976." Death Penalty Information Center. N.P., n.d. Web. 04 Dec. 2012. <http://www.deathpenaltyinfo.org/race-death-row-inmates-executed-1976>. "States With and Without the Death Penalty." Death Penalty Information Center. N.P., n.d. Web. 04 Dec. 2012. <http://www.deathpenaltyinfo.org/states-and-without-death-penalty>. "U.S. Constitution: Eighth Amendment." RSS. N.P., n.d. Web. 04 Dec. 2012. <http://caselaw.lp.findlaw.com/data/constitution/amendment08/06.html>. Baird, Robert M., and Stuart E. Rosenbaum. Punishment and the Death Penalty: The Current Debate. Amherst, NY: Prometheus, 1995. Print. Berns, Walter, and Joseph Bessette. "American Enterprise Institute." Why the Death Penalty Is Fair. Wall Street Journal, 09 Jan. 1998. Web. 04 Dec. 2012. <http://www.aei.org/article/why-the-death-penalty-is-fair>. Costanzo, Mark. Just Revenge: Costs and Consequences of the Death Penalty. New York: St. Martin 's, 1997. Print.