Capital Astenment: The Origin Of Capital Punishment

The Origin of Capital Punishment Henry Ford once said, “Capital punishment is as fundamentally wrong as a cure for crime as charity is wrong as a cure for poverty”. Capital punishment (the death penalty) is the legal killing of an individual as punishment for a crime they have committed. Many methods are/were used for capital punishment.While many people believe that capital punishment is right, many people also believe that capital punishment is wrong. Why does capital punishment exist and what is the reasoning behind its use? Also, were there court cases involving capital punishment? The use of capital punishment dates back to the eighteenth century (B.C.). In the eighteenth century, scribes wrote 282 laws on twelve clay tablets.

Although this punishment still exists, some people seem to agree and some people seem to disagree with the use of it. Some people might believe in revenge and that is also why some people might believe in the death penalty. Especially if murder was the crime that was committed; the loved ones of that family might be for it because they are so mad and devastated about the crime that was committed. This reasoning can also relate to the saying, “an eye for an eye”. It is also said that capital punishment is mentioned in the Bible; “it clearly calls for capital punishment in the case of intentional murder” (religion.blogs.cnn.com). People want closure as well. By enforcing capital punishment, the victim’s family (assuming the crime was murder) might receive closure by doing so. People also believe that justice is served by taking a criminal’s life. But other people might disagree with this opinion due to their beliefs. For instance, someone might believe that a person, who would be considered for capital punishment, should be punished but, not by death. They might believe that a person should just spend the rest of their lives in jail because they deserve to suffer rather than taking the easy way out by receiving the death penalty. Also, the death penalty seems to contradict itself. “Why kill people who kill people to show killing is wrong?” (Balancedpolitics.org). It is also believed that the inmate’s

Georgia is a court case that relates to capital punishment. A black adult man named William Henry Furman was sentenced to the death penalty after an attempt to rob a house. Of course he was not successful in robbing the house but instead shot the homeowner. After being sentenced, Furman appealed and took his case to the Supreme Court. He said that this violated the 14th amendment which states all citizens are treated equally no matter what race they are. The Supreme Court heard him out and came to a decision that capital punishment is cruel and unusual punishment which also violated the 8th amendment as well (YouTube.com). There was also no uniform criteria which is “a consistent standard by which things can be measured.” Eventually, Furman avoided the death penalty. But 4 years later, The Supreme Court Case, Gregg v. Georgia, came into play. Two friends, Troy Gregg and Floyd Allen, decided to hitchhike in Florida. Once they finally found a car, Troy shot and killed both the driver and the driver’s friend and drove all the way to North Carolina. Eventually the police found them. Gregg was sentenced to the death penalty but he appealed by saying it violated the 8th and 14th amendment. Although he appealed, the Supreme Court justified that the execution of Gregg was constitutional because according to kids.laws.com, Gregg was tried, head, and sentenced through a formal judicial system. This determined that Gregg was to still be sentenced to