Running head: THE DEATH PENALTY

The Death Penalty

Jessica Villatoro
Rowan-Cabarrus Community College

Running head: THE DEATH PENALTY

Abstract

Eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot. This is "lex talionis", the law of
retaliation. The death penalty has been around for centuries. In the past death by execution could
be given to a man just for simply looking at someone elses wife. As crimes evolved the form of
execution evolved. The death penalty is one of the most controversial topics worldwide. You are
either all for it or against it. The death penalty is given to the criminals who present the most
threat to society or themselves. From murder to rape, the death penalty is always a possible
sentence.

Running head: THE DEATH PENALTY

When thinking of the Death Penalty many thoughts come to mind, from different
people. Some people think of it as cruel, and usual punishment. Some others think of the death
penalty as a form of justice. Overall the discussion of the death penalty is a very controversial
topic worldwide. Gandhi once said, An eye for an eye makes the whole world blind. (Ghandi
and the Death Penalty 2010) Gandhis words been used by protesters to fight against the death
penalty. Gandhis quote has also been used to fight for non-violent punishments for criminals.
The death penalty goes all the way back to the eighteenth century B.C.
The Code of Hammurabi contained the first known death penalty laws. The code stated
twenty-five crimes that were punishable by death. Some of the crimes included were adultery,
and helping slaves escape. (Guernsey, The History of The Death Penalty 2014 ) The Code of
Hammurabi was made to deter crime. The punishments were cruel and wrong, but from this
came the first kind of death penalty type acts. The accused was to suffer an equal or worse
punishment then the crime they had committed.
Although executions had been taken place long before they were legal. The first everrecorded execution was in the British American Colonies. This execution was that of Captain
George Kendall and his crime was Treason. After the American Revolution all 13 US colonies
were using the death penalty. Since the colonies were now using capital punishment, the
government chose to limit the crimes punishable by death to treason and murder. The first
federal United States execution after the government limited the crimes punishable by death was
on June 25, 1970 (Marshalls Association, 2001).
Since then the death penalty has evolved from simply hanging criminals to more
advanced forms of execution. The first form is lethal injection, where the criminal is injected.

Running head: THE DEATH PENALTY

A lethal injection is used to painlessly kill the criminal; there is no suffering during death.
Another form of execution is the electric chair. This is where a criminal is sentenced to death by
electrocution. Another form is a firing squad where the inmate is tied to a chair using leather
straps across his body. Five shooters shot towards large blood vessel such as the heart for a quick
and fast death. The average cost of a single death sentence is $3 million, which are $1.9 million
more than the cost of a non-death penalty case. (Smith, Costs of Death Penalty 2014)
A major Supreme Court that received media coverage was Kennedy v. Louisiana.
On June 25, 2008 Patrick Kennedy was convicted and sentenced to death in Louisiana for the
rape of his 8 year-old stepdaughter. The state had a statute-authorized capital punishment for the
rape of any child less than 12 years of age. (Simmons 1)
Along with media coverage comes the views of the public. The death penalty brings up
many views, some positive and some negative. For those who oppose the death penalty, it is
seem as cruel. The death penalty has been tied to religion many times. For example some antideath penalty groups believe that it is wrong for a court to have a say in how someone dies. They
believe in gods will and that in Gods eyes the death penalty is not only wrong but also unholy.
(Simmons 26) Another argument they make is that the death penalty truly does not serve its
purpose. In July 2009 a study titled "Do Executions Lower Homicide Rates? The Views of
Leading Criminologists " by Michael L. Radelet and Traci L. LaCochave showed that the threat
of capital punishment does not deter criminals from committing crimes. (Washington Post, 1998)
On the other hand, there are some views on the death penalty, which are
extremely positive. Pro death penalty groups believe that they are getting rid of potential threats
to society by enforcing capital punishment. (Akorra, para. 5) It is believed that come criminals
are truly above the law and that they can influence those in the outside world while still being

Running head: THE DEATH PENALTY

behind bars. It is also believed that sometimes life imprisonment changes. For example in the
case of Stacey Lannert, a murderer who killed her step-father served 18 years of a life sentence
before being released back into society on parole due to good behavior. The death penalty
assured that no killer would walk out of prison again. (Akorra, para. 9)
Regardless of all views of the people, the final say is completely in a judges hand.
Although a jury can chose to give a criminal life a judge has the final say and can give any
criminal the death sentence. (McGough, para. 3) The death penalty has been around for ages and
although it has evolved in bringing new forms of execution, the entire process of the death
penalty has also been improved to ensure that all who is out to death is guilty. Even with the
many pros and cons of the death penalty, courts continue to use it to punish some of the most
dangerous killers.
One thing is for sure, not much has changed since the eighteenth century. The death
penalty is still legal in hopes that criminals will be scared off. Capital punishment is still used to
deter criminals from committing murder or other brutal crimes. After countless research I have
found that even when sentenced to death, criminals are still on death row for years before ever
seeing a death room. The process of capital punishment is a long one and in that time many
criminals are able to prove their innocence or find a lawyer good enough to get them a shorter
sentence and off death row. (Adams 234) Clearly the death penalty has some pros and some cons
but nonetheless it is still seen as a proper form of justice in the United States and across the
world.

Running head: THE DEATH PENALTY

Reference Page

Crawford, D. (2014, October 14). 10 Reasons to Oppose the Death Penalty. Retrieved October
17, 2014, from http://www.deathpenalty.org/article.php?list=class&class=20

Cruel and Unusual. (2013, December 23). The New Yorker.

Anderson, G. (2010, May 16). Gandhi and the Death Penalty. Retrieved November 5, 2014, from
http://www.olympiafor.org/Gandhi and the Death Penalty.pdf

Reggio, M. (1997, January 1). History of Death Penalty. Retrieved October 21, 2014.