Capital Punishments - Essay Example

In a wider context, capital punishment demeans human dignity. Violence cannot solve the rising cases of criminality. It should be stressed that toleration of execution as a means to solve criminality leaves an imprint on the citizenry’s mind that violence should be confronted with violence (Fridell 33). Capital punishment acts to legitimize violence within society. For this and other reasons to be discussed in this paper, capital punishment should be abolished since it is degrading to human life value.

There are those in society who perceive capital punishments as beneficial to human society due to its ability to deter criminals from committing crimes. In addition, they believe that capital punishment ensures that violent criminals have no chance to dish violence on society (Melusky & Pesto 55). However, it is important to note that these arguments have no support in the form of scientific literature. There is no proof that a causal connection exists between criminals committing crimes and capital punishment.

In addition, empirical research proves that many crimes committed in the US are crimes of passion or unplanned or un-premeditated crimes. Logically, when crimes are committed when a person is angry, the idea of capital punishment will not deter the prospective criminal at the time he is about to commit the crime (Melusky & Pesto 56). This is because he cannot rationally calculate the merits and demerits of his/her actions. Capital punishment can lead to wrongful execution and, therefore, must be done away with.

For example, the case of Randall Adams in Texas had seen him sentenced to death for a crime he had not committed. According to Errol Morris, whose documentary led to his freeing, “Prosecutors sometimes push capital punishment cases to improve their CV” (Morris 1). Unfortunately, in other cases, the evidence that can prove the death row inmate’s innocence is only obtained following their execution. Therefore, because there is the ever present chance of wrongful execution, capital punishment should be abolished.

Capital punishment creates doubt in society that the justice system is unreliable when they really need it. It also emotionally hurts the families of people who have been executed wrongly because it is impossible to resurrect them. Because judges and juries are humans and can make wrong decisions with regards to those deserving acquittal or conviction, wrongful executions will always occur (Melusky & Pesto 57). For this reason, capital punishment, because of its irreversibility, must be abolished.

Another detrimental effect of the death penalty has to do with the fact that it sends a message to society that their justice system acts as a revenge advocate, especially for those people who are victimized because of heinous crimes (Mandery 18). The death penalty sends a message to society that the reason the justice system exists is to aid the victims of heinous crimes and their families, rather than determine whether the suspects in the crime are guilty or innocent. Capital punishment can be interpreted in another way, which is that it does not give the offender any chance to realize their mistake and act to correct it.

The American justice system, in this case, is made to look biased and partial when it uses capital punishmen