The divisive issue of capital punishment has penetrating ethical allegations to all those involved. Capital punishment has been deemed inhumane which is why it has been abolished in all Australian jurisdictions. The debate of capital punishment has never ceased to exist in the United states. Capital punishment is defined as legally authorizing the killing of someone as a punishment for their crime (English oxford living dictionaries 2018). The same definition also applies to murder. There are 32 states in United States of America that support capital punishment.
These states in America should abolish capital punishment on the grounds that it is a cruel way serving justice and punishing the innocents it degrades the value of human life. The term capital does not represent any ideas of negative impacts where as punishment on the other hand is defined as the affliction or imposition of a penalty as a retribution for an offence. Neither of these words when mentioned individually do they represent any negative aspects but when put together they represent something far beyond any understandings, they have a meaning to them than what society today would call ‘just’ or fair treatment, these words together signify ‘Death’. Today in the America they believe that when a heinous crime is committed, lethal injection, electrocution or gas chamber is the best way to solve the solutions. Violence will never be the right solution to the increasing lawbreaking. It is stressful that society today accepts execution as a solution to criminality, significance, we are leaving a tag on the minds of the adolescences that the proper approach to violence is to impose violence. Violence begets violence. It is sad that when this happens we are legitimizing violence in our society.
It might seem reasonable in a case where someone has committed a first degree murder (that is to say a person premediated murdering another person) that they face death penalty. But it still doesn’t escape the fact that it is murder. “If we believe that murder is wrong and not admissible in our society, then it has to be wrong for everyone, not just individuals but governments as well’ (unknown) it does not count for underlying issues.
All of us are born innocent which is stripped away as we fall victims to the psychological and emotional burdens that in most case begin at home and later reinforced by society at large. The psychological and emotional problems we face as humans while growing up are what shape our mentalities. Numerous studies have been conducted such as the article from Gillespie that takes an emotional approach, stating that the state government should be protecting the lives of all citizens, even murders no matter what they have done. Furthermore, a recent study by Radelete and lacock (2009) states that the death penalty does not add any significant deterrent effect above of long term imprisonment. Nevertheless, the study conducted found nearly 78% of those surveyed said that having the death penalty does not lower the murder rate. In addition, nothing good comes from hate, and nothing good can ever come from capital punishment. The bible states in Romans 12:19 “beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God, for it is written “Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord” the statement steers society into allowing God take care of the sinful individuals in his own manner.
It is said numerous of times in the bible and by the government that each life should be treated equally. The pope stated in his radio interview that capital punishment “contradicts God’s plan for man and society and does not render justice to the victims, but rather vengeance”. Francis also made it clear in his statement that executing a prisoner can longer be justified by society’s needs to protect itself. Furthermore, the Pope addressed two issues projecting in the American context, he declared that capital punishment “loses all legitimacy” because of the judicial error and said that “there is no humane way of killing another person”. In the video, Francis also called that the commandment “thou shall not kill” applies both for the innocent and the guilty, adding that the jubilee of mercy is an occasion for promoting more evolved forms of respect for the life of each person. “The right to life and dignity are the most important of all human rights and this must be demonstrated by the state in everything that it does, including the way it punishes criminals.” – Justice Arthur ChaskalsonAccording to Amnesty International states that death penalty is a symptom of a culture of violence, not solution to and the risk of killing an innocent victim are very high.
In many cases documented by amnesty international stated that people were executed after being convicted in wholly unfair trails, the weight of the death penalty is disproportionally carried by those with less advantaged socio-economic backgrounds or belonging to a racial, ethnic or religious minority. This includes having limited access to legal representation, for example, or being at greater disadvantage in their experience of the criminal justice system amnesty international (2018).
