What would happen if there is no such thing as capital punishment in America? Capital punishment, or commonly called death penalty, refers to “the process of sentencing convicted offenders to death for the most serious crimes (capital crimes) and carrying out that sentence” ("Capital Punishment", Bureau of Justice Statistics) Capital punishment is the ultimate and final punishment, though ending the existence of those punished. Capital crimes such as First degree murder typically face the death penalty and those found guilty will be executed. The capital punishment is an issue that has been a huge debate in the United States. While there are many citizens support the capital punishment, there is also a large amount of opposition. Those that …show more content…
Crimes deprive lives, peace, and liberties from society. The criminal is disturbing the order and justice in society when they commit crime. As such, capital punishment is a punishment that restores order and justice to society by punishing criminal for his or her crime. Criminal punishment is a retributive justice for crimes. Some capital punishment opponents argue that retribution is simply just revenge. They believe that the desire to seek revenge is not rational. Capital punishment, opponents argue, is just a cycle of violence. Jeffrey H. Reiman, a professor of philosophy at American University in Washington, explain that retributivism is a theory that the criminal deserves to be punished for all the wrongdoing the criminal have done (321). Reiman disagrees that retribution motivated by spite. Instead, retribution is motivated by the demand of justice and lex talionis. Lex talionis is a principle of retaliation that a punishment should correspond in degree the offense of his wrongdoing. In other word, lex talionis means as an eye for an eye. No one should reject capital punishment just because it is a retributive justice. Moreover, capital punishment serves justice to the victims and the victims’ families as a retribution. Capital punishment gives comfort or closure to some of the victims and their families. Ann Scott, a mother of a murder victim, state in a testimony, “Even after [the murder] has been executed, we will still be left with all of our wonderful memories of [the victim] and all of the horror that was done to [the victim]. But perhaps once [the murder] is gone, we will be able to spend more time on the happy memories and less on thinking how [the victim’s] life ended”(qtd. in Evans 129). Ann Scott’s daughter is a victim of murder. Ann Scott’s family has broken down, depress, and struggle for years for the