The Death Penalty

Kristoff Adderley

Mayuri Deka

English 120, Section 6

13th November 2012

Death Penalty: A move in the wrong direction

Does the execution of a murderer serve justice for all? One of the most controversial topics in the world today not only deals with the death penalty, also known as capital punishment, but whether it should be abolished or not. Over the years, the death penalty has become a major issue in the Bahamas. Presently, most of the people in the Bahamas are enraged because of the increasing crime rate and are now beckoning for the death penalty Law to be re-established. Controversy over the death penalty has been a battle for quite some time; arguing whether it is right, wrong or is it effective. The death penalty is not the overall answer for the increasing violence and crime in the Bahamas. Larry Smith asserts that, “capital punishment is not the absolute answer for solving the current conditions in the Bahamas and will only deter crime if swift justice is handed down” (n.pag). According to the death penalty curriculum for students the death penalty can not restore peace to society because of three main reasons, “the death penalty does not deter crime, the risk of executing the innocent precludes the use of the death penalty, and the death penalty is wrong and inhumane”. Admittedly, many Bahamians argue that if a man takes another person’s life, he should be put to death as well.

Death penalty is the capital punishment in which a person’s life is ended because of committing a serious crime. According to Amnesty International, March 2010

Ninety five countries have abolished the death penalty for all crimes, nine countries for ordinary crimes, and thirty five countries in practice, but fifty eight countries are still applying the death penalty such as United States, Philippines and Saudi Arabia. Used methods are: hanging, firing, electrocution, gas chamber, and lethal injection” (n.pag).

Human life is essential and valuable therefore, it should...