My friend say that Capital punishment should be abolished?

Question

He says that too many innocnet people be killed and found later no guilty.
I need strong reason to show him that capital punishment should be retained to deter Murders.

Please give me strong logical reasons to shut up his mouth

Answer 1

Most of the arguments in favor of capital punishment are emotional in nature, not logical.



I supported capital punishment for a long time, but I have changed my stance over the years, for several reasons:



1. By far the most compelling is this: As your friend said, sometimes the legal system gets it wrong. In the last 30 years, over 100 people have been released from death row after years of imprisonment because they were exonerated by DNA evidence. Unfortunately, DNA evidence is not available in most cases. No matter how rare it is, the government should not risk executing one single innocent person.



Really, that should be reason enough for most people. If you need more, read on:



2. Because of the extra expense of prosecuting a DP case and the appeals process (which is necessary - see reason #1), it costs taxpayers MUCH more to execute prisoners than to imprison them for life.



3. The deterrent effect is questionable at best. Violent crime rates are actually higher in death penalty jurisdictions. This may seem counterintuitive, and there are many theories about why this is (Ted Bundy saw it as a challenge, so he chose Florida – the most active execution state at the time – to carry out his final murder spree). Personally, I think it has to do with the hypocrisy of taking a stand against murder…by killing people. The government becomes the bad parent who says, ‘do as I say, not as I do.’



4. There’s also an argument to be made that death is too good for the worst of our criminals. Let them wake up and go to bed every day of their lives in a prison cell, and think about the freedom they DON’T have, until they rot of old age. When Ted Bundy was finally arrested in 1978, he told the police officer, “I wish you had killed me.” Khalid Shaikh Mohammed (the architect of the 9/11 attacks) would love nothing better than to be put to death. In his words, "I have been looking to be a martyr [for a] long time."



5. Most governments are supposed to be secular, but for those who invoke Christian law in this debate, you can find arguments both for AND against the death penalty in the Bible. For example, Matthew 5:38-39 insists that violence shall not beget violence. James 4:12 says that God is the only one who can take a life in the name of justice. Leviticus 19:18 warns against vengeance (which, really, is what the death penalty amounts to). In John 8:7, Jesus himself says, "let he who is without sin cast the first stone."

Answer 2

Capital punishment is simply a raising of the stakes. It is the ultimate punishment for some of the most heinous of crimes. Without it, it would simply be one less retribution that criminals and murderers wouldn't have to worry about.



Although I think capital punishment is fit for particular crimes and situations, there is no doubt that innocent people have died. Former Illinois governor George Ryan placed a halt on executions in the State after so many instances were proven. DNA has proven posthumously that innocent people have been put to death over the years.

Answer 3

Capital punishment should be expanded to include pedofiles and rapists.Whether it's a deterrant or not isn't the issue.We (society) don't "need" these people around. The money wasted warehousing them could be better spent helping homeless veterans.Currently the methods used to determine guilt are extensive.I am not aware of any specific case in my lifetime where an innocent man was put to death.

Answer 4

You have a tough job here. There is no credible evidence that the death penalty deters murder and there is a serious and continuing risk of executing innocent people. Sources below.



129 people on death rows have been released with proof that they were wrongfully convicted. DNA, available in less than 10% of all homicides, can’t guarantee we won’t execute innocent people.



The death penalty doesn't prevent others from committing murder. No reliable study shows the death penalty deters others. Homicide rates are higher in states and regions that have it than in those that don’t.



Life without parole, on the books in 48 states, also prevents reoffending. It means what it says, and spending 23 of 24 hours a day locked in a tiny cell is not a picnic. Life without parole costs less than the death penalty.



The death penalty is much more expensive than life in prison, mostly because of the upfront costs of legal process which is supposed to prevent executions of innocent people. (upfront=before and during the initial trial)



The death penalty isn't reserved for the worst crimes, but for defendants with the worst lawyers. It doesn't apply to people with money. When is the last time a wealthy person was on death row, let alone executed?



The death penalty doesn't necessarily help families of murder victims. Murder victim family members have testified that the drawn-out death penalty process is painful for them and that life without parole is an appropriate alternative.



Problems with speeding up the process. Over 50 of the innocent people released from death row had already served over a decade. Speed up the process and we will execute innocent people.





Sources:



Death Penalty Information Center, www.deathpenaltyinfo.org, for stats on executions, reports on costs, deterrence studies, links to FBI crime stats and links to testimony (at state legislatures) of victims' family members.



FBI http://www.fbi.gov/ucr/cius2006/data/table_04.html



The Innocence Project, www.innocenceproject.org



http://www.deathpenaltyinfo.org/COcosttestimony.pdf page 3 and 4 on why the death penalty is so expensive



http://www.njadp.org/forms/signon-survivor.html for statements of victims’ families

Answer 5

it particularly is a toss up. whether a guy or woman gets the dying penalty,they have many opportunities to attraction the conviction or the sentence. it may take years earlier a guy or woman would be positioned to dying and that still skill many opportunities to discover that a guy or woman did no longer dedicate against the regulation. additionally many convictions have been overturned as a results of fact of advances in technologies (DNA,ballistics,hint info) these days. Capital punishment has no longer deterred crime the two. Prosecutors under tension to get a conviction have withheld advice that would desire to sparkling a defendant or used falsified info with the intention to get a conviction. as a results of fact of this the prosecutors are meant to show a replica of each little thing they have over to the protection criminal expert and visa-versa.

Answer 6

You're friend is right . A lot of innocent people are put to death for crimes they didn't commit.



I'm not saying I'm against Capital punishment....but I am agreeing that the system itself IS flawed.

Answer 7

Well I see ur friends point...but...for certain crimes where the suspect(s) are caught in the act, admit to it or for those that are guilty beyond a shadow of a doubt, throw the switch!

Answer 8

victim's families deserve closure, and the death penalty is used as leverage to make a perp confess to the murder, and perhaps tell on other murderers.

Answer 9

Execution to all mass murderers!!!!