The Death Penalty: Questions and Answers

The discussion on the death penalty has been ongoing for a long time with no end seeming close. The death penalty is the case where criminals convicted of rape or murder are supposed to be executed as they are thought to be a danger to society. Some people believe that a death sentence should not be passed to people, while some think the punishment should remain. To the opponents, they believe that the death sentence is brutal to society and without morals (Williams, 2016).

There is, however, a group that believes the death sentence should be passed to murderers and those that take part in rape as it deters the criminal activities from happening. However, the death sentence should not be passed to people as it is not ethical in the world of today.

As stated above, the debate concerning the death penalty has been ongoing for a long time all over the world. Opinions on this hot topic are different from one country to the other.

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A majority of countries have gotten rid of the death penalty, but some countries continue practicing the sentence (Steiker & Steiker, 2016). The effectiveness of the death penalty should be gauged by looking at the rates of crime, which indicates that this method of punishment does not help in reducing the number of criminal activities. For that reason, it should be abolished.
The main purpose of the death penalty is to bring the rates of criminal activities down. However, research shows that the death penalty has not been effective in taking down the number of illegal activities that happen in the world.

A good example of this statistic is seen in the 25 states in the US where crime is on the rise. In the20 states where the death penalty has been legalized, the rates of crime remain at alarming rates. If the death sentence would have been an effective mode of combating crime, then there would be few cases of crime, but which is not the case (Steiker & Steiker, 2016). In the world of today, capital punishment has gained other purposes like revenge. Therefore, it should be noted that the death sentence is against human rights, and for that reason, it should not be practiced.

Again, there is no evidence indicating that the death penalty is effective when it comes to the reduction and prevention of criminal activities. However, it has been shown that there are many misgivings when it comes to practicing this death penalty. Research shows that people who get executed usually are innocent. A good example is the conviction of Donald Marshall, who was behind bars for more than ten years for a killing he did not participate in. In the year 2017, statistics from prisons in the US showed that 137 inmates that were released were very innocent (Williams, 2016). Data concerning people that have been killed are hidden, making it difficult to find out the real number. Still, there is a possibility that among those executed, there are innocent people. Information indicates that 4 percent is the number of innocent people who have been executed. Therefore, it would be essential to get rid of the death penalty as it leads to the killing of innocent people.
Statistics have also shown that the death penalty in the US is a segregative policy within the American population. The death penalty has had adverse effects on the African American population in the US as the population of death inmates in the US prisons stands at 5 percent. Besides, the population of African Americans in the US stands at 13 percent (Cholbi & Madva, 2018). The figures, therefore, indicate that the black community would be more likely to be executed as compared to a white individual. Accordingly, this misgiving of the death sentence should inform the US government to abolish the death penalty policy.

The other claim that explains why the death penalty should be abolished concerns the moral standing and ethical perspective of the policy. No doubt that the death sentence is unethical and morally wrong. When a person kills another, the best punishment is not to murder them too but to try them and make them get out of such thoughts. There is no way that a person can steal from thieves or get to rape this that takes part in rape to revenge. Such a case is, with no doubt, depredating to authorities concerned with penal (Wilson, 2016). When there is a case of revenge, it means that it is condoning crime by getting to repeat it. By murdering those that have murdered others, it is getting the focus away from the victims having attention on the criminals. Therefore, it would be good to get rid of the death penalty as a sentence in the US and all over the world.

In conclusion, the death penalty should not be passed to people today, as it is not ethical. As stated above, the death penalty leads to the execution of innocent people, and for that reason, it should be banned entirely. Again, the death sentence should be abolished as statistics have shown that the sentence is not supportive when it comes to bringing the rates of crime down, as seen in a number of crime-infested states in the US. Moreover, the death sentence should be abolished as it is not morally and ethically correct in the world today. In addition, with the cruelty of how the death penalty is practiced, like through lethal injection and electrocution, no doubt that the policy should be written off.