The Death Penalty Is An Inappropriate Punishment That Must Be Abolished

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executions per year has risen tremendously fast, especially in the last few years. There were no more than 30 executions nationwide in a single year until 1992, and that number jumped up to 74 in 1997 (“Execution” n.pag.). These 74 executions in the 38 states in which capital punishment is legal are the most in any one year since the death penalty was reinstated in 1976 (Lane n.pag.). So far in 1998, there have been 62 executions throughout the United States (“Execution” n.pag.). A recent poll showed that 74% of Americans strongly support capital punishment for the crime of murder (Pooley n.pag.). The death penalty is now such a popular issue that many politicians will run for office crying for blood simply to win more votes (Reyes 3). The American public is sure that a harsh but effective punishment is necessary for the crime of murder, and currently capital punishment seems to be the obvious choice for them (Bowers 226). This observation makes it clear many in our nation ...

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the life of innocent people. Author Charles Lane has written, “To assume this Godlike power of deciding whether a person should live or die, the state should possess Godlike wisdom” (n.pag.). Lane also stated that “The risk of a single wrongful execution is too high a price to pay for 100 rightful ones” (n.pag.). This is intriguing because this is the same principle that our jury system is based on, and it would be logical that there should be consistency throughout the criminal justice system. The uncertainty of convictions in capital cases is a major fault of capital punishment.
Granted, the death penalty is the most effective form of punishment in capital cases. While life ...

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