ipl-logo

Capital Punishment Essay: Is The Death Penalty Constitutional?

1127 Words5 Pages

Is the Death Penalty Constitutional? The death sentence has been the capital punishment in America since its creation. To this day, the death sentence remains, with small changes to make it more appropriate for the modern day. For instance, only murder committed under special cases can warrant the sentence, and beyond that, no minors or mentally ill people can be given the death sentence. Even with these modifications, was the death sentence ever truly constitutional? Many different opinions exist surrounding this topic, but when taking the evidence of history as well as the constitution and current world into consideration, it is clear that the death sentence is indeed constitutional. Before delving into the modern world, the past can help …show more content…

A number of other things have changed that refined the death sentence and made it more useable and fair. For instance, in the court case Stanford v Kentucky, the court law changed, establishing that someone under the age of 16 could not receive the death sentence. This change was expanded upon in 2005 with Roper v Simmons, when the death sentence was extended to not allow any minors to be executed. This change in the death sentence may seem strange at first, but it actually acts to make the death sentence more constitutional, but still keeping the core values. The idea behind the change is that as minors, or undeveloped adults, teens and children may not be able to fully grasp the weight of their actions and because of that, the death sentence cannot be given. This idea of the death sentence not being given to those who don't understand the severity of their actions can be carried over to another court case, Atkins v Virginia. Atkins was sentenced to death, but it was argued that he was mentally disabled and because of that, it would be unconstitutional to sentence him to death. Both of these cases show that the death penalty has changed not only to be more fitting of today's society but also changed to streamline the sentence and truly make it so that only those who are truly deserving of the sentence receive it. So now the sentence is shown to only come to those who deserve it, but even if someone “deserves it” was it ever constitutional in the first place? The short answer is

Show More
Related
677 Words | 3 Pages

While there are far more subjects to discuss regarding to this issue, I feel it necessary to state that I believe the death penalty should exist in a perfect society. I believe that certain crimes and certain situations warrant the punishment of death. However, the our society is not perfect. The justice system has failed to fairly use this punishment in far too many instances, and concludes that they cannot justly wield this

Read More
3358 Words | 14 Pages

So when the decision to use it was made in the Roper v. Simmons case it was with good reason. They made the decision to use it because they saw no way to make it possible to reintegrate Simmons into regular society. So rather than waste time and money in a fruitless attempt to reform a person just for them to relapse as soon as they are given the opportunity for them to do so, they decided to circumvent this pointless process and end the fool’s errand before it even began, that is of course they elected to use the death sentence. This article supports the idea that the use of life imprisonment is not an effective method of dealing with people who commit heinous crimes.

Read More
130 Words | 1 Pages

In the article, “The Death Penalty: An Opinion Essay,” written by Hamilton Spectator, states that is the first issue that he mentions is that the justice system is never 100% right all the time. While other situations can be changed by a judge a death penalty is unchangeable. Various times of similar crimes are conferred and diverse sentences are given out. As well as depending on the criminals race the consequences valid on the judge 's opinion.

Read More
1391 Words | 6 Pages

When looking at the death penalty from a legal standpoint there is much debate on whether it is constitutional. The Gregg v. Georgia case ruled in 1976 that capital punishment was not in violation of the Eighth or the Fourteenth Amendment and that it could only be imposed if one of ten circumstances could be found to prove the guilt of the offender without any reasonable doubt. (Gregg v. Georgia, (n.d.)). When it comes to the viewpoint of those in our police system there seems to be a common agreement on the topic of the death penalty. Law enforcement officers see the death penalty as more of a hindrance than a deterrence when it comes to sentencing.

Read More
344 Words | 2 Pages

Rough Draft Is the death penalty an effective and justified punishment? This is a topic many Americans have discussed for a long time, and has caused much controversy. Both sides have their pros and cons, and they will be discussed. The first point that many people have about capital punishment is that it’s unconstitutional.

Read More
471 Words | 2 Pages

It wasn’t until 1972 that the dealt penalty was ever challenged by the Supreme Court. Even then, states were only warned that capital punishment should be done in a consistent and fair way (Bonta & Gendreau, 1990). The rights of anyone accused of committing a crime is protected by the Constitution. As an example, Article I of the Constitution establishes the right of an injection of habeas corpus – an order that demands a judge to assess if there would be sufficient cause to keep an individual in jail.

Read More
1274 Words | 6 Pages

Should the Death Penalty be outlawed through the United States? Since the beginning of executions, people have had a negative or positive view on the death penalty. Capital Punishment has created a huge debate between whether the government should make the death penalty illegal or legal. The cause of this has made 19 States to make the death penalty illegal. People who are for say and “eye for an eye” should be taken more seriously but the people who are against say no one deserves to die.

Read More
1924 Words | 8 Pages

The Death of Capital Punishment Should we put capital punishment to death? Capital punishment has been used as far back as the eighteenth-century B.C. The death penalty has spread from Great Britain to the States during the American Revolution, where it has brought a whole slew of problems and despair across the country. Capital punishment may seem to be the solution to heinous criminals, but it should be abolished due to the extensive costs, the fact that it is a form of cruel and unusual punishment, and the tremendous emotional stress on everyone involved.

Read More
1012 Words | 5 Pages

Ethical Considerations of the Death Penalty in the United States A problem that is occurring in today’s society is whether or not capital punishment is worth continuing and spreading entirely through the United States. Capital punishment is a lawful infliction of death used as a punishment. Over the years it has varied from each state and which crimes are applicable for this kind of punishment. Currently, there are 31 states where the death penalty has been legalized (CNN 2017).

Read More
1230 Words | 5 Pages

The number of death sentences have dropped. In 2012 there was only 82, 83 in 2013, and 73 in 2014. The death penalty is not something that is being used often. It may even cause closure to some victims

Read More
658 Words | 3 Pages

Life in prison is, without a doubt, not only a fair punishment but a just one as well. Granting juvenile delinquents who have committed murder a lesser punishment gives them the chance to go back to the streets. It allows them to commit more crimes. Perhaps even murder another victim possibly your child. Even though the Supreme Court has made their decision, it does not mean that it is a correct

Read More
468 Words | 2 Pages

Today the death penalty is only use for serious crime like for example murder in some states. Also only 31 states have the death penalty there for serious crimes “some people think that the death penalty should not be use in none of the 50 states:. Compared today from the 1700s was use for minder crimes in today use for minder crimes. The death penalty can be only use for serious crime but back then it was use for small crimes .lillions doesn't have the death penalty here because some people thinks its not right some

Read More
1294 Words | 6 Pages

As of the current moment, the use of capital punishment in the United States is still legal in certain states and under specific conditions. Although the use of the capital punishment has been harshly reprimanded over the recent decades, there are many states that still see the death penalty as the proper punishment for the most extreme of crimes. At its core, the death penalty is defined as “the execution of a person as punishment for a crime against the state” (Death Penalty). This is the most extreme punishment a person can receive in the American justice system, and, under federal laws, it is still perfectly acceptable from a legal perspective.

Read More
908 Words | 4 Pages

“But application of the death penalty remains so unequal that it offends both the U.S. constitution and international human rights law” (Butler). Butler acknowledges that the execution of people is unfair because it’s vicious and it affronts human rights. The upshot of all of this is that the death sentence has no fairness and kills innocent

Read More
1695 Words | 7 Pages

Is it justified? The opinions on the topic vary considerably, each side with its own merits and demerits. There are some that see the death penalty as justified, as required and other that see it as a inhumane method of punishment and as something that should be abolished. But who can say for sure that either side is in the right, that either side has the correct way of thinking? To begin evaluating both sides, a few things must be done in advance.

Read More

More about Capital Punishment Essay: Is The Death Penalty Constitutional?

Related Topics

Open Document