Current Controversy About Capital Punishment in Texas - Essay Example

Current controversy about capital punishment in Texas For all criminal offenses in Texas, the original jurisdiction is made by the district courts. If any person is declared guilty of a capital felony, he or she might face a death punishment if the state agrees to it. These executions are real, and doubts about the fairness and accuracy of the capital punishment in Texas have increased. A significant number of people believe that the death penalty is carried out fairly in the state, and others believe that an innocent person could suffer in the hands of the killer. Majority in the state remain in favor of the capital punishment. Many are not willing to exit any soon. A capital felony refers to an intention of a person to cause a fatality of another person on purpose (Penal Code 1). Since in 1982, the state of Texas has executed more than five hundred people (Texas Death Penalty Education and Resource Center 1). Some people in the United States of America support the capital punishment in Texas, not knowing the full particulars of people executed. Texans believe that it discourages crime. According to Brock, Sorensen and Marquart (163), the death sentence does not guarantee that criminals will stop from committing spontaneous or calculated crimes. I think laws should be enforced that discourage capital punishment and support life in prison instead. According to the data from FBI, states and countries that practice death penalty as a means of reducing murder crimes tend to have higher cases of murder than states that oppose it. For example, Southeast states having a high number of executions tend to have more violent crimes than northeast states that practice low number of executions (Brock et al. 167). In my opinion, real solutions to such violent criminal behaviors should not be based on the death penalty. This is because since it worsens the situation by increasing the number of brutal behaviors in the society, therefore, reinforcing the violence cycle. Under special circumstances, there are felonies subjected to capital punishment in Texas. If someone is found guilty of such crimes like However, some executions are made wrongly in Texas where innocent people are executed. For example, 35 years old Cameron Todd Willingham is believed to have been executed wrongly in 2004 for the murder of his children (Sorensen and Pilgrim 39). He was accused of arson when fire consumed his house in 1991 in Corsicana Texas (Innocence Project 1). There were several doubts about whether the house had been burnt down deliberately or not. He did not accept to plead guilty to that accusation. He was later injected with a lethal solution. Before his death, he said that he was innocent; leading to more scientific doubts (The Guardian 1). This situation led to intense outcry to a point where the legislature in Texas demanded that an inquiry be made from the forensic science commission of the state. The commission concluded that the findings of Willingham committing arson were unfounded and consisted of a collection of unscientific beliefs that were not based on scientific investigation of fire. These findings were scheduled to be presented to the Texas science commission. However, two days before Craig Beyler could handle them to TSC, Perry changed the commission’s composition, which means that the meeting had to be canceled (Innocence Project 1). More often, people who support the death penalty like Perry and some Republicans believe that people who are executed must have committed the most offensive crimes; such people are like McVeigh and Dahmer. They do this to appeal to people that these crimes are unthinkable and worse. Despite their efforts to show that those executed have committed the worst crimes, history shows the opposite. I think that when some people term death penalty as just, and that some criminal behaviors deserve a death sentence is not right. Brock et al., (171) suggest that what they do is that they make assumptions about the fairness of the capital punishment. Most of the time, people believe that culpability and gravity of a criminal behavior determine the person to be executed, but this has not been the case. Several facts state otherwise. In Texas, the crime location, pure chance, local politics, legal counsel quality, and plea bargaining influences the process by which a person is subjected to capital punishment (Stolzenberg 370-379). More often, criminals who are found guilty of a similar crime under similar circumstances, receive sentences that are vastly different. Moreover, both race and social and economic status of the victim and the offender influences the decision of who is to die or live. According to Brock et al., (170), over the last five years in Texas, sixty percent of all death penalties have been imposed on African-Americans. Convicted murderers in Texas are subjected to death penalties because the public has the opinion that life imprisonment consumes much of the taxpayer’s money. According to TCADP, (1) death penalties attract a higher cost than detaining a criminal for life. In death penalties, the greatest costs are incurred before and during trial (Texas Coalition to Abolish Death Penalty (TCADP 1). Dallas Morning News conducted a study on the cost of execution and imprisonment in Texas and came up with the conclusion that executing a person cost three times as much than life imprisonment (TCADP 1). My thought is instead of subjecting criminals to death penalties that cost lots of money; Texas State should abolish it and adopt a tradition of imprisonment. The money used for death sentences should be used to develop more crime preventive measures like more police officers. Majority of people who live in Texas trust their justice system. However, there has been a controversy of how justice is involved in pursuing the death punishment. Sorensen et al., (45) suggest that all justice systems no matter how good they may seem, are based on human judgment and reason. Therefore, they are subject to human error. The sentence or verdict of a specific criminal behavior is most of the time impacted by various things. They include issues such as evidence misinterpretation, community prejudices, false testimony, mistaken identification by an eyewitness, expert testimony that s unreliable, community pressures, and also legal representation that is incompetent. Since 1973, one hundred and fifty people have been released from death row (Stolzenberg 358-363). Their release was due to them being conviction wrongfully or due to evidence that was credible. What the Texas legislation ought to understand is that when a person is wrongfully convicted, the guilty criminal walks the streets freely. The justice system in Texas should, therefore, learn to not only protect the innocent, but also to not punish the guilty always. According to Sorensen et al., (67), it is the obligation of a state to protect the society by holding guilty criminals accountable for their criminal actions and heinous acts. However, executing some people in the name of protecting the society is right. The legislature in Texas passed a law in 2005 that juries and prosecutors did not have before (TCADP 1). The law provided Life without the Possibility of Parole (LWOP) as an option of sentencing. This law enables us to protect the society without necessarily resorting to executing another person. When a death penalty is carried out by the state in Texas, it is done with more focus on victim’s family. The loss of a loved one and innocent life through murder creates a feeling of frustration and anger. The state does so to avenge for the family. Still, the decision about the punishment to be imposed for a specific crime cannot be determined by the victim’s family wishes. Majority of the family members of the victim might support the death penalty, but we should put into consideration that not all victims dance the same music. Various organizations argue that death penalties only perpetuate the violence that victimized loved ones and that it draws resources and attention away from the families of the victims (Sorensen et al., 165). Hence, it delays the process of healing. Moreover, their daily activities are influenced by appeals that keep on reminding them of their loved ones murder case. Also, by terminating the life of a guilty person, his or her family members become victims. I think that the Texas State should offer the victims of violent acts healing and mercy, instead of more deaths and violence. Despite all negative consequences associated with the capital punishment in Texas, majority of Americans still support it. The public support only drops in a small margin if the state has executed an innocent person. There are others who think that the penalty is often not used enough. The states of Arkansas, California, Kentucky, and Tennessee support the death penalty to a point of even resorting to buy sodium thiopental so that they can continue with carrying out more lethal injections (Sorensen et al., 167). The desire for retribution and vengeance make most people support the death penalty (Balko 1). Brock et al., (172) suggest that sixty percent of those who support death penalty do this to back capital punishment under some form of this reasoning. However, the notion is seen as affecting judgments. For example, the ASA Mermel judgment in the Hobbs case (Balko 1). Also, I think the desire for a criminal justice system that is retributive can only lead to vengeance. Therefore, to my opinion, the justice system should make it a priority to seek truth by way of fairness, reason, good judgment, and appropriate evidence. Today, most of the executions are performed through lethal injections in Texas (Balko 1). This type of execution is believed by many to be the most humane and the least painful. For this reason, most Americans become comfortable with the death penalty. Dr. Ralph Gary, the medical director in Texas, said that he consulted Dr. Gerry Etheredge, a Veterinarian in Huntsville. The veterinarian suggested that use of barbiturate overdose on suspects was very effective, cheap, and safe (The Guardian 1). I think these injections are painful, but the executioners want people to see the opposite. Appellate Judges in Texas are elected to office, which means they work to please the public so that they can be re-elected again. Therefore, most of them support the death penalty without consideration of the complexities of each particular death penalty case (Walpin 1). Therefore, majority of these appellate judges have refused to publish death penalty cases’ decisions. Moreover, even in cases that lack clear evidence of the defendant’s guilt; some dismiss any habeas corpus appeals (Walpin 1). Capital punishment in Texas is heavily influenced by the public opinion (Balko 1). The public supports it immense that the state is willing to do anything to not back it. People in Texas might be supportive of severe penalties and strict law enforcement for those found guilty of heinous crimes, but I think the criminal justice system in Texas should not base their verdicts on public opinion. In conclusion, I think the death penalty is not the only option to curbing crime in the society. There are various countries and states that do not have the death penalty and yet they experience few cases of crimes. For example, some states such as Connecticut have over the last years abolished the death sentence (Ariosto 1). Several other states that propose the death penalty have stayed for years without executing any person. Texas has the highest number of executions. Despite the high number of executions carried in Texas, violent crimes and murders are still on the rise. This means that if the death penalty restores the order, then Texas should be among the states with low rates of crime, but it is not. Therefore, there is no need of killing another person because he or she is guilty of a heinous offense. It is important to states like Texas to spend more of its limited resources and time on positive crime prevention measures than on the death penalty. Works Cited Ariosto, David. “Connecticut becomes 17th state to abolish death penalty.” Cnn.com. Web. 15 February 2015. Balko, Radley. “Why Americans Still Support the Death Penalty.” Huffingstonpost.com. Web. 18 February 2015. Brock, Deon E., Jon Sorensen, and James W. Marquart. "Racial Disparities in Capital Punishment in Texas after." The Justice Professional: 159-72. Print. Innocence Project. “Cameron Todd Willingham: Wrongfully Convicted and Executed in Texas.” Innocenceproject.org. Web. 15 March 2015. Penal Code. “Offenses Against a person.” Statutes.legis.state.tx.us. Web. 15 February 2014. Sorensen, Jonathan R., and Rocky LeAnn Pilgrim. Lethal Injection: Capital Punishment in Texas during the Modern Era. Austin, TX: U of Texas, 2006. Print. Stolzenberg, Lisa D. "Capital Punishment, Execution Publicity and Murder in Houston, Texas." Journal of Criminal Law and Criminology 94.2 (2004): 351-380. Print. Texas Coalition to Abolish Death Penalty. “Texas Death Penalty Facts.” Tcadp.org. Web. 15 March 2015. Texas Death Penalty Education and Resource Center. “Rep Harold Dutton Files Bill to Abolish Texas Death Penalty.” Texasdeathpenalty.org. Web. 15 March 2015. The Guardian. “Texas executions: the most controversial cases.” Theguardian.com. Web. 15 February 2015. Walpin, Ne. “Why is Texas #1 in Executions?” Pbs.org. Web. 15 February 2015. Read More