Contemporary Issues Concerning the Death Penalty
Death Penalty
The death penalty is constantly debated; some of the main topics are the manner in which the execution is carried out, the ethicality involved with taking an individual’s life, the cost of maintaining death penalty programs, and the effectiveness of the death penalty as a deterrent to crime. The death penalty has been used as punishment for multitudes of crimes; Babylonian King Hammurabi detailed 25 crimes punishable by death in the eighteenth century B.C. During the seventh century B.C., the Draconian Code of Athens ordered that death be the only punishment for all crimes.
The guidelines for administering the death penalty have changed drastically since those times, as have the methods for carrying out the death penalty. In the past, the sentence was carried out via drowning, burning, beating, impaling, and drawing and quartering the accused, the most used current method of administering death as punishment for a crime is lethal injection, although a few states have the choice of electrocution or gas chamber, depending on state statutes. According to the Clark County Prosecuting Attorney website,
In the 37 states and federal government that currently have death penalty statutes, five different methods of execution are prescribed: Lethal Injection, Electrocution, Lethal Gas, Firing Squad, and Hanging. The vast majority of jurisdictions provide for execution by lethal injection (The Clark County Prosecuting Attorney, 2008).
These methods currently in use are considered more humane than the various forms used in the past, the object is to execute with the least amount of suffering. Some of these issues may be why Nebraska is literally the only state that has no way to carry out the death sentence.
In the United States the use of the death penalty is left up to each state, some have placed moratoriums on the death penalty while others are more willing to execute those sentenced to death. The constitutionality of the death penalty has often come
The death penalty is constantly debated; some of the main topics are the manner in which the execution is carried out, the ethicality involved with taking an individual’s life, the cost of maintaining death penalty programs, and the effectiveness of the death penalty as a deterrent to crime. The death penalty has been used as punishment for multitudes of crimes; Babylonian King Hammurabi detailed 25 crimes punishable by death in the eighteenth century B.C. During the seventh century B.C., the Draconian Code of Athens ordered that death be the only punishment for all crimes.
The guidelines for administering the death penalty have changed drastically since those times, as have the methods for carrying out the death penalty. In the past, the sentence was carried out via drowning, burning, beating, impaling, and drawing and quartering the accused, the most used current method of administering death as punishment for a crime is lethal injection, although a few states have the choice of electrocution or gas chamber, depending on state statutes. According to the Clark County Prosecuting Attorney website,
In the 37 states and federal government that currently have death penalty statutes, five different methods of execution are prescribed: Lethal Injection, Electrocution, Lethal Gas, Firing Squad, and Hanging. The vast majority of jurisdictions provide for execution by lethal injection (The Clark County Prosecuting Attorney, 2008).
These methods currently in use are considered more humane than the various forms used in the past, the object is to execute with the least amount of suffering. Some of these issues may be why Nebraska is literally the only state that has no way to carry out the death sentence.
In the United States the use of the death penalty is left up to each state, some have placed moratoriums on the death penalty while others are more willing to execute those sentenced to death. The constitutionality of the death penalty has often come
Bibliography: Death Penalty Information Center. (2008). Legislative Activity – Illinois. Retrieved July 28, 2008, from http://www.deathpenaltyinfo.org/article.php?did=2183 Dieter, R. (1994). Millions Misspent: What Politicians Don’t Say About the High Costs of the Death Penalty. Retrieved July 28, 2008, from http://www.deathpenaltyinfo.org/article.php?scid=45&did=385 Furman v. Georgia. (1972). SUPREME COURT OF THE UNITED STATES. 408 U.S. 238. No. 69-5003 The Biography Channel. (2008). Notorious Crime Files: Arthur Shawcroft. Retrieved July 28, 2008, from http://www.biography.com/notorious/crimefiles.do?catId=259456&action=view&profileId=262838&selectedIndex=1§ionName=Crimes The Clark County Prosecuting Attorney (2008). Methods of Execution. Retrieved July 26, 2008, from http://www.clarkprosecutor.org/html/death/methods.htm Van den Haag, E. (1986). The Ultimate Punishment: A Defense. Harvard Law Review Association. Retrieved July 28, 2008, from http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/angel/procon/haagarticle.html Virginia Office of Attorney General, Victim Notification Program (n.d.). Capital Offense Conviction Appeals Process in Virginia. Retrieved July 28, 2008, from http://www.prodeathpenalty.com/virginia/capitalappeals.html