Dissecting the Death Penalty

Dissecting the Death Penalty

Thomas Edison State College

Throughout its controversial history and reauthorization in 1976, the death penalty has only resulted in 1,378 prisons meeting their end through one of the approved methods of enforcement. As of October 2013, there are 3,088 inmates awaiting their execution in the United States, nearly three times the amount of enforced death sentences in the last 38 years. (Death Penalty Information Center, 2014). Despite recent trends showing that the pursuit of death penalty sentences has been on the decline, there are still 32 states that give jurors the option to contemplate a recommendation of death in cases involving murder or other capital offenses. The current practices used in capital punishment convictions where the criminal is sentenced to death fail to achieve their intended results and often create unintended financial burdens as well as potential Constitutional violations.

While almost all crimes will have circumstances specific to their occurrence, underlying themes become apparent when examined more closely. Similarly, punishments for a crime can be categorized based on both their severity and duration. According to Homans (2008), a punishment can be seen as serving three basic purposes – reformation, retribution, and deterrence. A closer examination of each purpose with regards to the use of the death penalty reveals that they come up short in terms of achieving their desired result.

All major religions in the world offer sinners some form of repentance. This idea of undoing past wrongs and returning to wherever it is that is deemed acceptable is the foundation for the notion of reformation. In many instances, punishments go a long way in achieving the goals of reformation. Whether it is mandatory enrollment in a substance abuse program or incarceration for a predetermined period of time, criminals are provided a means of either overcoming addictions intrinsic to their crimes, or escaping...