Death Penalty

Death Penalty

Death Penalty

The death penalty is a highly controversial subject that has been argued for and against for decades. Whether for or against the death penalty most people have their own opinions, and are passionate about their stance on the issue. There are many factors that people must ask themselves to decide what side of the death penalty they are on. Often people are against the death penalty in theory and then drastically change their mind when presented with a heinous crime. The fact remains that the death penalty is legal in the United States and many countries throughout the world. It is up to each individual to decide what their stance will be and to what extent they will support or defend the death penalty.

Some people believe that the death penalty serves as a deterrent for crime in the United States. I do not agree with this. I feel that if someone is going to commit a crime with the heinousness that would deserve the death penalty, they are likely not in the mind frame of thinking about consequences. It may serve as a small deterrent for people who are looking for a reason within themselves to justify not carrying out a crime they have planned, but I feel as though this is a small demographic and something that could never be proven through statistical numbers.

Personally, I stand for the death penalty. There are a large amount of people who are for lack of a better term "fair weather" supporters. These people choose to be in favor of the death penalty in the most heinous situations and not when the crime is in their eyes lesser. I feel that people should choose a side and be able to defend their decisions and make those decisions as an overall rather than a case by case basis. I believe that the death penalty should remain legal for several reasons. If someone takes the life of another individual they do not deserve to live themselves. This is of course when speaking of taking another's life as a crime. If a soldier takes the life of an enemy combatant in the defense of our country then by no means should he or she be held accountable for doing so. I do not think that the legal system which hands down the death penalty is without fault. There is no way for our legal system as a whole to be perfect, this remains the case when dealing with the death penalty.

Some believe that race plays a role in whether or not the death penalty is handed out. "There is a good deal of evidence suggesting that the practice of capital punishment is racist. The penalty is far more likely to be imposed in the case of a black perpetrator, especially if his victim is white." (Kaveny, 2010, p. 6) I fear that the racial discrepancies may come from the volume of crimes committed by each race against