Capital Punishment (5717 words)

22 Aug, 2018 Free Essays 0

Capital Punishment
This day in age murderers’ actions are getting more and more incomprehensive.

They are no longer just committing murder: they are torturing, mutilating, and
engaging in grossly inappropriate acts against fellow human beings. Behaviors
such as this will continue if nothing is done to stop them. The death penalty is
a humane way to punish the convicted and deter these gruesome acts. Early as
1930, we can find the first recorded execution. Between the times of 1930 to
1967 there was a recorded number of 3,859 people executed. The following nine
years would bring victory for those against capital punishment, there was no
executions done in this time frame. Gregg vs. Georgia, Supreme Court of 1976
made a ruling that “the death penalty does not violate the Cruel and Unusual
Punishment Clause of the Eighth Amendment.” The death penalty has been
accepted by thirty-nine states of America (Newton, 1983). One of the basics in
understanding capital punishment is the methods of which are used. Which will be
the first of things I will be presenting. I will be showing how selections of
death row are made. The last of subject matters that I will be touching on are
the problems with the process of capital punishment and a possible more
effective approach. I will also be concluding my findings and ending with a
thought of my own. Methods of Execution In the United States today, there are
five existing methods of execution. These methods are used to kill convicted
criminals that have been given the sentence of the death penalty. The different
methods are; lethal injection, electrocution, gas chamber, hanging, and firing
squad shootings. Lethal injection is currently used by thirty-six states in
America. It is the most commonly used from of execution in the U.S. The
preparation begins outside of the chamber with the use of a gurney. The convict
is held to the gurney by wrist and ankle straps. There is then a cardiac monitor
and stethoscope attached and started. In each arm there is a saline intravenous
line. The convict is then covered by a sheet. The lines are turned off and the
felon receives the first injection of sodium thiopental. This puts the felon to
sleep. They are then injected with Pavulon, which relaxes all of the muscles in
the body and stops breathing. Shortly after, the felon dies. The next method of
execution used is electrocution. This method is done by putting the person in a
wooden chair, which they are secured to by leather straps. The electric current
runs through the head and out the leg. The first current is of two thousand or
more volts of electricity, lasting only an approximated three seconds. The
voltage is then lowered to help prevent external burning of the body. The
initial shock of the electricity causes the person’s body to surge forward.

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The shock burns the internal organs or the person, which leaves them dead.

During this process urinating, vomiting of blood, change in skin color, and even
swelling or burning of the skin may occur. This method of execution is currently
used by only eleven states. In a gas chamber execution the prisoner is put in a
sealed steel chamber. The prisoner is restrained in a chair that has a pan
below. At the first signal a valve is opened which releases hydrochloric acid
into the pan. When a second signal is given tablets or crystals of about eight
ounces of potassium cyanide is dropped into the acid. This combination creates a
hydrocyanic gas. The fumes of this deadly gas rise and are inhaled by the
prisoner, which kills them. The prisoner is pronounced dead and then the gas is
sucked out of the chamber by big fans. Before the body is taken out it is
sprayed with ammonia to neutralize any gas that still existed. Execution by the
gas chamber started in attempt to find a more humane method than the electric
chair. The gas chamber is currently used by only five states, that is less than
electrocution. One of the oldest methods of execution that is still used, though
in only three states, is hanging. This method is based on the person’s weight;
therefore the person must be weighed prior to the hanging. The right amount of
weight is needed in “the drop” to make sure that the death is instant and of
minimal bruising (Sandholzer, 1999). If the weight is not of the proper amount
it can cause a person to be strangled or possibly beheaded. The way that this is
performed is by the use of a noose, which is placed behind the person’s left
ear. When dropped the person’s neck is dislocated, causing death. The last of
executions still used, which is also an old one, is shooting by a firing squad.

Execution by a firing squad is the most popular in the world. More than sixty
countries use it as a method. In the United States, however, only three states
use shooting by a fire squad as a sentence to the death penalty. The way in
which a shooting takes place starts by the prisoner being bound to a chair and
placed in front of an oval wall. The doctor locates the heart by use of a
stethoscope and places a target over it. Only twenty feet from the target are
the trained shooters. Only one of the shooters’ gun holds the bullet that will
take the life of the convict. They all shoot their guns at once, so that no one
knows who made the fatal shot. All of these procedures are done fast, and with
the least amount of pain possible, if any at all. For anyone to say that these
methods are not humane, would be unrealistic. The convicts whom have been
sentenced to walk the green mile have really gotten off easy in my eyes. Many of
them have committed cruel, torturous acts on innocent human beings. Why do they
deserve to die in a peaceful, humane way? They don’t, but because under our
constitution no one shall under go cruel and unusual punishment, though that is
what they have done to others. Felons should feel lucky that capital punishment
is so humane. Death Row Sentencing There are many logical factors that determine
a person being sentenced to death. A criminal’s past record and the
seriousness of the crime currently committed are two major factors in
determining death row sentencing. These factors are what have sent more men to
death row than women. Some people believe that the selection of death row is
unfair due to the number of men vs. women facing it. Jurors have many things to
consider when convicting the accused. How brutal was it, how many people were
killed, was it premeditated, was it torturous? These are all things that the
jurors considering when determining the fate of the accused. Of course they also
have to keep decide if the evidence proves, with out a doubt, the person is
guilty. In sentencing a person to death row states often look at the person’s
background of violence. Other concerns that bring up past convictions of violent
acts and murders help to lead jurors in their decision making process. Male
murderers with earlier convictions are four times as likely to possess a
judicial disadvantage than a female because of a prior violent felony charge (McCuen,
1997). Women are not as quick to show aggression as men are. This increases the
likely hood of a prosecutor to persuaded to go to capital trial and for the jury
to sentence the death penalty. Effective Deterrent Deterrence is a theory that a
threatened punishment must be of a severe enough consequence in order to
counteract a criminal’s feel of pleasure to commit a crime. Specific
deterrence is the inability of a convict to commit another crime in result to
their given punishment. A person not committing a crime because of the severity
of the punishment if they carry out with it is known a general deterrence.

Murderers’ that come across as somewhat rational and intelligent, whom have
committed a premeditated crime are those that the death penalty as a deterrent
work. An analyzing study of data from the years 1936 to 1977 done by Professor
Stephen Layson of the University of North Carolina made a significant conclusion
about deterrence. His conclusion was that eighteen murders are deterred in
result to on execution. According to Layson’s studies, if correct, somewhere
around 125,000 murders have been deterred due to the threat of the death penalty
as punishment (McCuen, 1997). McComb of the Supreme Court of California
discovered fourteen examples in the police department of defendants whom, in
explaining their refusal to carry a weapon or kill. This pointed to the fear of
the death penalty. This is great evidence supporting that people are truly
deterred by the presence of the death penalty. The death penalty is a definate
deterrent to crime, however it is not effective enough. The delayed punishment
received is not paired closely enough to the crime. Therefore, the consequence
of the death penalty doesn’t always seem associated with the criminal act
because of the long time before the execution takes place. The only way to
condition criminal to view execution as a punishment to their behavior is by
having it happen immediately after conviction and sentencing. This comes from
the idea of classical conditioning and negative reinforcements (Meyers, 1998).

Problems The process of convicting a felon and sentencing them to death is very
long. With the conviction and sentencing always comes appeal by the convicted.

The constant appeals can lead to years in court, which costs millions of
dollars. This is where the problem with a convict not seeing the death penalty
as a punishment for their actions. The cost keeping a person on death row and
the many years, sometimes as many is twenty-five is way too high. With new
methods of presenting evidence of D.N.A. the process needs to be sped up to make
the death penalty to be a more effective deterrent. An Ending Thought As
American citizens were are all born with certain rights. With these rights
however, come responsibilities. When a person takes the life and rights of
another human being they forfeit their rights. I believe the guilty party is
lucky to get one of the humane executions used in America. What ever happened to
the idea of an “eye for an eye?” Executions used in the U.S. are extremely
humane, especially when considering the brutality used by the condemned. For a
long time our country has focussed on finding the most humane way to execute the
convicted. We need to turn our heads in a new direction and start figuring out a
shorter process for death row. Way too many tax dollars of the American people
are used to defend the already convicted. With our modern techniques for
presenting evidence, the accused should need only to be convicted once, followed
b immediate execution. To make capital punishment a more effective deterrent the
process needs to be faster. There is no reason to spend years determining when
and if the convicted will take the walk down the green mile. Bibliography David
Von Drehle, “Among the Lowest of the Dead,” published by Times Books, 1995.

469 pages. Edited by Thomas Draper, “Capital Punishment,” published by H. W.

Wilson Company, 1985, Volume 57. 166 pages. David G. Meyers, “Psychology,
fifth edition,” Worth Publishers, 1998, 610 pages. Ian Gray ; Moira
Stanley, “A Punishment in Search of a Crime,” published by Avon Books, 1989.

383 pages. Kuno Sandholzer, “Methods of Execution” Capital Punishment.com,
1999, 6 pages Hugo Adam Bedau, “The Case Against the Death Penalty,”
American Civil Liberties Union1982. 24 pages. Stephen E. Schonebaum (editor),
“Does Capital Punishment Deter Crime?” Greenhaven Press, Inc. 1998. 95
Pages. News Matters (video), “The Death Penalty Right or Wrong?” Knowledge
Unlimited, Inc. 1997. approximately 15 minutes. Gary E. McCuuen, “The Death
Penalty and the Disadvantaged” Gary E. McCuen Publications Inc. 1997. 168
pages. Lynn S. Branham ; Sheldon Krantz, “Sentencing, Corrections, and
Prisoner’s Rights,” St. Paul, Minn. West Publishing Co. 1994. 338 pages.

Introduction This day in age murderers’ actions are getting more and more
incomprehensive. They are no longer just committing murder: they are torturing,
mutilating, and engaging in grossly inappropriate acts against fellow human
beings. Behaviors such as this will continue if nothing is done to stop them.

The death penalty is a humane way to punish the convicted and deter these
gruesome acts. Early as 1930, we can find the first recorded execution. Between
the times of 1930 to 1967 there was a recorded number of 3,859 people executed.

The following nine years would bring victory for those against capital
punishment, there was no executions done in this time frame. Gregg vs. Georgia,
Supreme Court of 1976 made a ruling that “the death penalty does not violate
the Cruel and Unusual Punishment Clause of the Eighth Amendment.” The death
penalty has been accepted by thirty-nine states of America (Newton, 1983). One
of the basics in understanding capital punishment is the methods of which are
used. Which will be the first of things I will be presenting. I will be showing
how selections of death row are made. The last of subject matters that I will be
touching on are the problems with the process of capital punishment and a
possible more effective approach. I will also be concluding my findings and
ending with a thought of my own. Methods of Execution In the United States
today, there are five existing methods of execution. These methods are used to
kill convicted criminals that have been given the sentence of the death penalty.

The different methods are; lethal injection, electrocution, gas chamber,
hanging, and firing squad shootings. Lethal injection is currently used by
thirty-six states in America. It is the most commonly used from of execution in
the U.S. The preparation begins outside of the chamber with the use of a gurney.

The convict is held to the gurney by wrist and ankle straps. There is then a
cardiac monitor and stethoscope attached and started. In each arm there is a
saline intravenous line. The convict is then covered by a sheet. The lines are
turned off and the felon receives the first injection of sodium thiopental. This
puts the felon to sleep. They are then injected with Pavulon, which relaxes all
of the muscles in the body and stops breathing. Shortly after, the felon dies.

The next method of execution used is electrocution. This method is done by
putting the person in a wooden chair, which they are secured to by leather
straps. The electric current runs through the head and out the leg. The first
current is of two thousand or more volts of electricity, lasting only an
approximated three seconds. The voltage is then lowered to help prevent external
burning of the body. The initial shock of the electricity causes the person’s
body to surge forward. The shock burns the internal organs or the person, which
leaves them dead. During this process urinating, vomiting of blood, change in
skin color, and even swelling or burning of the skin may occur. This method of
execution is currently used by only eleven states. In a gas chamber execution
the prisoner is put in a sealed steel chamber. The prisoner is restrained in a
chair that has a pan below. At the first signal a valve is opened which releases
hydrochloric acid into the pan. When a second signal is given tablets or
crystals of about eight ounces of potassium cyanide is dropped into the acid.

This combination creates a hydrocyanic gas. The fumes of this deadly gas rise
and are inhaled by the prisoner, which kills them. The prisoner is pronounced
dead and then the gas is sucked out of the chamber by big fans. Before the body
is taken out it is sprayed with ammonia to neutralize any gas that still
existed. Execution by the gas chamber started in attempt to find a more humane
method than the electric chair. The gas chamber is currently used by only five
states, that is less than electrocution. One of the oldest methods of execution
that is still used, though in only three states, is hanging. This method is
based on the person’s weight; therefore the person must be weighed prior to
the hanging. The right amount of weight is needed in “the drop” to make sure
that the death is instant and of minimal bruising (Sandholzer, 1999). If the
weight is not of the proper amount it can cause a person to be strangled or
possibly beheaded. The way that this is performed is by the use of a noose,
which is placed behind the person’s left ear. When dropped the person’s neck
is dislocated, causing death. The last of executions still used, which is also
an old one, is shooting by a firing squad. Execution by a firing squad is the
most popular in the world. More than sixty countries use it as a method. In the
United States, however, only three states use shooting by a fire squad as a
sentence to the death penalty. The way in which a shooting takes place starts by
the prisoner being bound to a chair and placed in front of an oval wall. The
doctor locates the heart by use of a stethoscope and places a target over it.

Only twenty feet from the target are the trained shooters. Only one of the
shooters’ gun holds the bullet that will take the life of the convict. They
all shoot their guns at once, so that no one knows who made the fatal shot. All
of these procedures are done fast, and with the least amount of pain possible,
if any at all. For anyone to say that these methods are not humane, would be
unrealistic. The convicts whom have been sentenced to walk the green mile have
really gotten off easy in my eyes. Many of them have committed cruel, torturous
acts on innocent human beings. Why do they deserve to die in a peaceful, humane
way? They don’t, but because under our constitution no one shall under go
cruel and unusual punishment, though that is what they have done to others.

Felons should feel lucky that capital punishment is so humane. Death Row
Sentencing There are many logical factors that determine a person being
sentenced to death. A criminal’s past record and the seriousness of the crime
currently committed are two major factors in determining death row sentencing.

These factors are what have sent more men to death row than women. Some people
believe that the selection of death row is unfair due to the number of men vs.

women facing it. Jurors have many things to consider when convicting the
accused. How brutal was it, how many people were killed, was it premeditated,
was it torturous? These are all things that the jurors considering when
determining the fate of the accused. Of course they also have to keep decide if
the evidence proves, with out a doubt, the person is guilty. In sentencing a
person to death row states often look at the person’s background of violence.

Other concerns that bring up past convictions of violent acts and murders help
to lead jurors in their decision making process. Male murderers with earlier
convictions are four times as likely to possess a judicial disadvantage than a
female because of a prior violent felony charge (McCuen, 1997). Women are not as
quick to show aggression as men are. This increases the likely hood of a
prosecutor to persuaded to go to capital trial and for the jury to sentence the
death penalty. Effective Deterrent Deterrence is a theory that a threatened
punishment must be of a severe enough consequence in order to counteract a
criminal’s feel of pleasure to commit a crime. Specific deterrence is the
inability of a convict to commit another crime in result to their given
punishment. A person not committing a crime because of the severity of the
punishment if they carry out with it is known a general deterrence. Murderers’
that come across as somewhat rational and intelligent, whom have committed a
premeditated crime are those that the death penalty as a deterrent work. An
analyzing study of data from the years 1936 to 1977 done by Professor Stephen
Layson of the University of North Carolina made a significant conclusion about
deterrence. His conclusion was that eighteen murders are deterred in result to
on execution. According to Layson’s studies, if correct, somewhere around
125,000 murders have been deterred due to the threat of the death penalty as
punishment (McCuen, 1997). McComb of the Supreme Court of California discovered
fourteen examples in the police department of defendants whom, in explaining
their refusal to carry a weapon or kill. This pointed to the fear of the death
penalty. This is great evidence supporting that people are truly deterred by the
presence of the death penalty. The death penalty is a definate deterrent to
crime, however it is not effective enough. The delayed punishment received is
not paired closely enough to the crime. Therefore, the consequence of the death
penalty doesn’t always seem associated with the criminal act because of the
long time before the execution takes place. The only way to condition criminal
to view execution as a punishment to their behavior is by having it happen
immediately after conviction and sentencing. This comes from the idea of
classical conditioning and negative reinforcements (Meyers, 1998). Problems The
process of convicting a felon and sentencing them to death is very long. With
the conviction and sentencing always comes appeal by the convicted. The constant
appeals can lead to years in court, which costs millions of dollars. This is
where the problem with a convict not seeing the death penalty as a punishment
for their actions. The cost keeping a person on death row and the many years,
sometimes as many is twenty-five is way too high. With new methods of presenting
evidence of D.N.A. the process needs to be sped up to make the death penalty to
be a more effective deterrent. An Ending Thought As American citizens were are
all born with certain rights. With these rights however, come responsibilities.

When a person takes the life and rights of another human being they forfeit
their rights. I believe the guilty party is lucky to get one of the humane
executions used in America. What ever happened to the idea of an “eye for an
eye?” Executions used in the U.S. are extremely humane, especially when
considering the brutality used by the condemned. For a long time our country has
focussed on finding the most humane way to execute the convicted. We need to
turn our heads in a new direction and start figuring out a shorter process for
death row. Way too many tax dollars of the American people are used to defend
the already convicted. With our modern techniques for presenting evidence, the
accused should need only to be convicted once, followed b immediate execution.

To make capital punishment a more effective deterrent the process needs to be
faster. There is no reason to spend years determining when and if the convicted
will take the walk down the green mile. Bibliography David Von Drehle, “Among
the Lowest of the Dead,” published by Times Books, 1995. 469 pages. Edited by
Thomas Draper, “Capital Punishment,” published by H. W. Wilson Company,
1985, Volume 57. 166 pages. David G. Meyers, “Psychology, fifth edition,”
Worth Publishers, 1998, 610 pages. Ian Gray & Moira Stanley, “A Punishment
in Search of a Crime,” published by Avon Books, 1989. 383 pages. Kuno
Sandholzer, “Methods of Execution” Capital Punishment.com, 1999, 6 pages
Hugo Adam Bedau, “The Case Against the Death Penalty,” American Civil
Liberties Union1982. 24 pages. Stephen E. Schonebaum (editor), “Does Capital
Punishment Deter Crime?” Greenhaven Press, Inc. 1998. 95 Pages. News Matters
(video), “The Death Penalty Right or Wrong?” Knowledge Unlimited, Inc. 1997.

approximately 15 minutes. Gary E. McCuuen, “The Death Penalty and the
Disadvantaged” Gary E. McCuen Publications Inc. 1997. 168 pages. Lynn S.

Branham & Sheldon Krantz, “Sentencing, Corrections, and Prisoner’s
Rights,” St. Paul, Minn. West Publishing Co. 1994. 338 pages. Introduction
This day in age murderers’ actions are getting more and more incomprehensive.

The shock burns the internal organs or the person, which leaves them dead.

Problems The process of convicting a felon and sentencing them to death is very
long. With the conviction and sentencing always comes appeal by the convicted.

Bibliography
David Von Drehle, “Among the Lowest of the Dead,” published by Times
Books, 1995. 469 pages. Edited by Thomas Draper, “Capital Punishment,”
published by H. W. Wilson Company, 1985, Volume 57. 166 pages. David G. Meyers,
“Psychology, fifth edition,” Worth Publishers, 1998, 610 pages. Ian Gray
& Moira Stanley, “A Punishment in Search of a Crime,” published by Avon
Books, 1989. 383 pages. Kuno Sandholzer, “Methods of Execution” Capital
Punishment.com, 1999, 6 pages Hugo Adam Bedau, “The Case Against the Death
Penalty,” American Civil Liberties Union1982. 24 pages. Stephen E. Schonebaum
(editor), “Does Capital Punishment Deter Crime?” Greenhaven Press, Inc.

1998. 95 Pages. News Matters (video), “The Death Penalty Right or Wrong?”
Knowledge Unlimited, Inc. 1997. approximately 15 minutes. Gary E. McCuuen,
“The Death Penalty and the Disadvantaged” Gary E. McCuen Publications Inc.

1997. 168 pages. Lynn S. Branham & Sheldon Krantz, “Sentencing,
Corrections, and Prisoner’s Rights,” St. Paul, Minn. West Publishing Co.

1994. 338 pages.

Capital Punishment (5717 words)

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