Death Penalty Synthesis Paper

Death Penalty Ignorance Widely discussed all over the world, the death penalty has caused much conflict with personal and spiritual beliefs. But how much does the public really know about the death penalty? How are the societal stereotypes on the death penalty affecting the public’s views about it? Before taking a stance on the death penalty, individuals should consider what might be new information to them. This includes the brutalization effect, the lack of deterrence in the history of the court system, the jury stereotyping, wrongful convictions, and the different controversial worldviews. Research indicates that American death penalty laws are not justified and the public is painfully uneducated about it.
One of these misconceptions is the Brutalization Effect, which is the idea that the homicide rate increases around the geographical area during the time of an execution on death row. Gary Potter, a professor of police studies, explains, in an article, that the reasons for this are:
Executions desensitize the public to the immorality of killing, increasing the probability that some people will then decide to kill; the state legitimizes the notion that vengeance for past misdeeds is acceptable; and executions also have an imitation effect. People actually will follow the example set by the state, after all, people feel if the government can kill its enemies, so can they (Potter 1997).
Society reacts to political and other controversies in many ways. Violence is a common backlash that puts communities in danger. This is influenced by the poor example set by the political authorities making these decisions. It is hypocritical of our government to commit the same crime of ending an individual’s life, especially if he or she is being punished because of murder. With that said, states and the institutions of law need to set a better example for their society to follow. The public is not specifically informed about the negative retaliation that heightens