Death Penalty Discourse in Early Rabbinic and Christian Cultures - Research Paper Example

Death Penalty Discourse in Early Rabbinic and Christian Cultures Introduction Death penalty is one of the forms of punishment that are applied by nations to punish offenders, especially those convicted of capital offences. It has been in use for many years, since the time of King Hammurabi, as well as during the Roman Empire (Berkowitz 2006 p 66). Death penalty has been applied on offenders for offences that continue to be committed in the society. The question that arises is whether death penalty deters crime. This is because the severity of the death penalty is enough to scare people from engaging in crime. However, crimes only change in nature but continue to be committed. States that practice death penalty continue to enforce tougher sentences to ensure that criminals are scared from further crime. This has not worked, and raises questions as to whether tougher sentences reduce crime. The use of death penalty has therefore been a controversial issue. Proponents of death penalty continue to emphasize on its importance in deterrence of crime while critics continue to oppose its implementation. On the other hand, criminals are not explicitly sentenced to death after being suspected of committing crimes. They have right to defend themselves as well as to appeal after being sentenced to death, which raises questions in regard to whether they have too many rights that may be supportive towards criminal activities. The constitution of many states also seems to offer too much protection to the accused persons (Steven 1997 p 57). This essay is a critique of death penalty. It presents information regarding the historic roots and current data on the issue. It covers the background as well as the origins of death penalty. The reasons for using death penalty as well as individuals and groups directly or indirectly interested in resolving the issue have been highlighted. The essay also identifies the value conflict involved. The various stand points of people regarding the issue, as well as the pros and cons of death penalty have been discussed. Contradictions regarding the use of death penalty have also been highlighted. History of Death Penalty Since the eighth century B. C. death penalty has been in use. It was a severe form of punishment at that time, and offenders had no as many rights as the do now. Once convicted of a crime that was categorized as capital offence for example in the Code of King Hammurabi, the offender was executed without delay. During his reign in the eighteenth century B. C, there were laws that allowed the execution of offenders in 25 varying crimes. The Hittite code was also among the laws that allowed the use of death penalty. In Athens, the Draconian code is renowned for having allowed the execution of offenders in any kind of crime (Berkowitz 2006 p 66). The Roman law also allowed the crucifixion and other methods of capital punishment that many people refer as crude, such as physical impairment and beheading of criminals. These were amongst the forms of punishment in the Roman Empire in the 5th century B. C. The laws were referred to as “the Roman laws of the twelve tablets” (Scott 2001 p 63). In the modern world, death penalty was continued in the developed and the less developed countries. Britain, America and Japan are renowned for the use of death penalty. In the tenth century for example, Britain used death penalty for the punishment of offenders (David 1995 p 91). This was accomplished through hanging the criminals to death, boiling and other crude methods of taking the life of criminals. The manner and time of execution varied between progressive leaders. For example, some believed in execution through hanging, beheading and such punishments as the appropriate methods of punishment while others believed that it is only the criminals of war that desired such kind of punishment. Leaders such as Henry VIII emphasized on the use of death penalty. Steven (1997 p 66) observes that the more than 70, 0000 convicts were executed during King Henry’s reign in Britain. Statistics regarding Death Penalty According to Bureau of Justice Statistics (2009), the United States leads in the number of people executed annually. The law allows executions with the number going beyond 12,000 since the time when the nation was a colony. The number of offenders who have been executed in the United States keeps on fluctuating as a result the public failure to support capital punishment. The Supreme Court has once banned the application of the death penalty once in 1972, which led to a major reduction in the number of executions. However, this ban did not last for long as it was later revitalized, and people began being executed (David 1995 p 93). I was left for the discretion of the states to determine whether to apply death penalty or not. Most of the states have done away with death penalty, including Minnesota, Michigan and Iowa among several others. Others have not abolished death penalty but have not executed criminals for many years since the last executions carried out in 1976, including New Yolk, Kansas and New Jersey among others (Bureau of Justice Statistics 2009). Arguments regarding Death Penalty Studies indicate some of the executions are carried out as a result the inability of convicts to hire lawyers to defend their cases. More over, it has also been established that most of the people who are executed are usually the poor (Meyer & Grant p 34). In regard to gender, women also suffer from execution as a result of male dominance in many criminal justice systems. Virginia has the highest number of executions according to a recent research (Pete 1995 p 82). It has also been established that most of the citizens are for the maintenance of death penalty. However it has been proved that the more the number of executions, the higher the crime rate in the states that practice death penalty. On the other hand, appeal has been made difficult under the recent developments in the criminal justice system. This has led to the maintenance of high rates of execution (Pete 1995 p 67). Many countries including Canada have stopped the death penalty, and as Davies et al. (2005 p 31) observes, there has been a notable decline in the number of homicide offences since the termination of death penalty. People who are largely affected by homicide and other offences that are regarded as capital offences usually support death penalty (David 1995 p 97). Humanitarian organizations are also focusing on the elimination of death penalty, which is viewed as a violation of human rights. Abolitionist movements have been pushing towards the termination of death penalty, although this has not yet been accomplished in many nations. The council of Europe has been significant towards advocating for abolition of death penalty among states. The opponents of death penalty point out the life sentence as the alternative to punishing capital offences. However, developed countries such as Japan and other economies such as China continue with executions, although the rate is more controlled than the initial executions before the prevailing activism against death penalty (Meyer & Grant p 43). Some people are usually against, while others are for the use of death penalty. For example, Davies et al. (2005 p 36) observes that humans need not pretend that they are better than others. No human being would like to face a death penalty, regardless of the crime committed. Opponents view the use of death penalty as wastage of resources, which would otherwise be used for development purposes. This is because since no person would readily agree to accept a death penalty meted on him/her, a lot of money is used for appeals. More over, they argue that two wrongs do not make a right. This is somehow logical due to the fact that homicide is a wrong, but it is not compensated through killing the offender through the death penalty. On the other hand, with each person having a specific role to play in life, it is usually unnecessary to eliminate a person, since his role becomes a burden o other people or the state. On the other hand, there are certain arguments for the pro side of death penalty, whereby it is viewed as a way of warning impending offenders in regard to desist from crime. In this way, they view it as a way to deter crime in the society (Meyer & Grant p 45). Somehow, death penalty deters crime. This is because criminals tend to shun from engaging in the crimes that they understand are associated with a death penalty. More over, death penalty is seen as a strategy to punish the people who take the lives of others. It is usually sorrowful for members of a particular society to lose a loved one through the hands of a murderer, who continues to live amongst them. It is believed that there is a possibility of recidivism, whereby the criminals get back to the heinous crimes after serving jail terms. They therefore view death penalty as the most appropriate punishment for such people (Davies et al. 2005 p 52). Conclusion Death penalty is among the severe forms of punishment that mankind has imposed against himself. It was practiced since the ancient periods by the nations that advanced ahead of the others such as in the Roman Empire and Greece. Death penalty has been in practice since 18th century B. C. The manner in which it is practiced varies widely. Some countries have been abolishing and revitalizing its use. The United States is among the countries that have been using death penalty for a long period. However, the execution of death row inmates is left to the discretion of the states. Some have even abolished the use of death penalty. There are various opinions regarding the use of this kind of punishment, with some people opposing it while others are for the death penalty. The contradiction is usually the view that the executions are a deprivation of the right to life. Those who are fir the death penalty are usually focused on what the individual has done to the society (Pete 1995 p 82). However, with many countries tending to reject the practice, it might be dropped in future. References 1. Berkowitz, B. A. Execution and Invention: Death Penalty Discourse in Early Rabbinic and Christian Cultures, Oxford University Press, 2006 2. Bureau of Justice Statistics, Capital Punishment Statistics, 2009 viewed on 28th Oct. 2009 at 3. Davies M. Croall H. & Tyrer J. Criminal Justice: An Introduction to the Criminal Justice System in England and Wales, Longman, 2005 4. David V. D. Among the lowest of the dead: the culture of death row, Random House, New York, 1995 5. Meyer J. F. & Grant D. R. The Courts in Our Criminal Justice System, Prentice Hall, 2002 6. Pete E. Circumstantial Evidence: Death, Life, and Justice in a Southern Town, Bantam Books, New York, 1995 7. Steven R. D. “The real war on crime: the report of the National Criminal Justice Commission", Harper Perennial, New York, 1997 8. Scott S. P. The Civil Law: Including the Twelve Tables, the Institutes of Gaius, the Rules of Ulpian, the Opinions of Paulus, the Enactments of Justinian, and the Constitutions, Lawbook Exchange Ltd, 2001 Read More