Death Penalty, for or against?

[Rhoda D'Ettore]

When I hear about cases where people on death row or serving life are released by new technology or evidence, I wonder if the death penalty should be allowed.

However, I also think that perhaps it should be saved for instances where police catch the killer in the act. I also believe child molesters should be put to death, they are the slime of society.

What do you think?

 

[Kittyworker]

Totally for. There are a number of reasons. First I don't think rehabilitation works in most cases. Second, there are just some crimes that are so evil that execution is (in my opinion) the only appropriate punishment. Third, I don't want to be paying for these guys to eat on tax money, life without parole... If they are just going to be in a cage the rest of their lives without a chance to contribute to society than just get it over with. Fourth, if they are in jail there is a chance they escape or kill other people in the jail. I don't think this is a risk worth taking.

 

[Mackmax]

I am completely for the death penalty. The lethal injection used during the death penalty is actually much cheaper than providing for the prisoner for the rest of his life sentence, its just that the prisoner's lawyers often repeal the verdict over and over, and the court costs add up drastically.
I don't think we should keep a vicious, despicable person alive. We don't benefit from them, and in fact, its the exact opposite, and the world is better off without them.
Some people argue that living a life sentence in prison is more off a punishment than a painless death, but I disagree. Vicious criminals aren't kept in the rough and tough don't-drop-the-soap type prisons, and if they were, I'd agree with the people who argue that point. But they live in the prisons where they have plenty of therapists and receive many privileges that less harsh prisoners don't get.
I support the death penalty whole-heartedly, but I do think that we need a better system when it comes to who gets the death penalty. Many innocent people have even put on death row, and many people who don't deserve to die get sentenced to death, which isn't fair at all.

 

[missbishi]

I'm not sure myself. When I hear about pedophiles, the first thing I think is that they deserve to be put to death. But then again, innocent people do get sentenced to death and this is just awful. I really don't know what the best solution would be.

On a lighter note, Mackmax, I love your phrase "don't-drop-the-soap type prisons"! It really made me laugh!

 

[shilpa123]

It all depends on the kind of crime a person has committed. I do believe it is totally worth it in some cases, but in some cases it is not worth it. I think it is best to think about the case and then decide.

 

[Shimus]

Against it, no matter what. And let me explain why.

If a crime is committed, and it does warrant a "Death Penalty" the penalty should be life without the chance of parole. THAT is a penalty. Putting them on Death Row and then killing them is just wasting the systems resources until the day they expire. So, to truly repent for a crime of a horrible magnitude you must be stuck in a hellish condition for life, yours for theirs. That is the only equivalency I can see.

 

[Muthoni]

I think that the death penalty should be abolished. When someone dies, there life on earth ends. They do not pay for their crime. I wish there was a way a criminal can be forced to become the slave of the person they have hurt. That way, they would think about the consequences of their actions every day. Killing them is actually giving them a free ride to the worlds beyond. Most of these criminals have nothing to lose.

 

[mrsbright]

I am against, completely against. Death penalty has made no positive difference in the time it was the norm, and it's not like the states who still have it have a lesser criminal rate or anything. There have been ton of cases where the executed "criminal" turned out to be innocent. I don't think that to allow murder by the state is good ethics. I think the US is already punitive enough as it is. Nothing ever convinced me that "the final solution" is the better one. I still thinks it's a sad thing so many people are so much for it. I guess it can't be helped.

 

[Rainman]

The death penalty gives criminals an easy way out for crimes they've committed. That's why I have always been and forever will be against the death penalty. When someone does something wrong they must pay for it either in kind or be imprisoned and slave for the government [penal labor] all their lives. That would be fair enough punishment.

 

[bala]

The death penalty gives criminals an easy way out for crimes they've committed. That's why I have always been and forever will be against the death penalty. When someone does something wrong they must pay for it either in kind or be imprisoned and slave for the government [penal labor] all their lives. That would be fair enough punishment.

Sounds true but it always can't be life imprisonment right..? Either way when the criminal comes outta jail he might as well restart all his activities in a vicious cycle.

 

[DancingLady]

For first degree murder, yes, I am for it because i feel that it is a proper punishment for the crime. For second degree I like not have the death penalty as a sentence option because the act wasn't planned.

 

[primalclaws1974]

When I hear about cases where people on death row or serving life are released by new technology or evidence, I wonder if the death penalty should be allowed.

However, I also think that perhaps it should be saved for instances where police catch the killer in the act. I also believe child molesters should be put to death, they are the slime of society.

What do you think?

The death penalty is not there to punish the "slime of society", it is supposed to be a deterrent. But it doesn't work. People that commit murder usually do it in the heat of the moment, and are not thinking of consequences. Secondly, many innocent people can be put to death (including accused molesters), and if the information comes too late? If the death penalty really made people not commit crimes, then I would be for it, but since it is expensive and essentially useless, there's no place for it.

 

[HyphenSam]

I am against it, sort of. Some innocent people can be put down and not realise it until it is too late. But for people who commit mass murders and have huge evidence for it, they definitely deserve the death penalty.

 

[stevesxs9]

I've always been for the death penalty. When you unprovokingly kill someone, there's no way you can give their life back and it seems very unfair to me that the perpetrator should live.

 

[Shimus]

I've always been for the death penalty. When you unprovokingly kill someone, there's no way you can give their life back and it seems very unfair to me that the perpetrator should live.

Why they should live? Because killing them is the easy way out - it's what they want. If you force them into some deep and dark hole for the rest of THEIR life, they will either break under the intense mental pressure or they'll be a shadow of their former self. If you kill them off, you're really playing into their hands.

Make them live. If they won't repent at least they have a place to reflect on their actions the rest of their life.

 

[GlacialDoom]

I think that people who are spending life in prison should be able to choose: either continue living in prison, or be killed by a lethal injection or something like that. I think it's only human to offer this chance, and it's way better to know they went peacefully rather than seeing them hung in their cell all of a sudden.

 

[shilpa123]

Death penalty is good punishment if the crime is that severe. I believe a lot of people have been come against this punishment for minor reasons, which should not be the case.

 

[shilpa123]

I believe that death penalty can be quite dangerous at times. I think it is best to try and learn quite a lot from the mistake done so that nobody make mistakes on death penalty.

 

[donnalynn47]

I'm also for the death penalty especially if it involves the elderly, or children. I to wonder about people that are wrongful convicted. What if in fact they are innocent of the crime? Never the less far to many killers are getting off when in reality they need to be put down like the mad dog they are.

 

[Rosyrain]

I am against the death penalty because I don't think it does any good. For one, we are sanitizing the government to commit murder and I question how that makes the government any better than the criminal. The 2nd reason is because it is very expensive to execute a person.