the stentorian I ncssm
opinion
february2007 11
America and capital punishment
Is the death penalty a just sentence for first-degree
murder in today’s world?
Yes
By Tyier Ross
Is one life worth more than another? Is “an eye for an eye”
an immoral practice? When referring to capital punishment, I
feel that “no” is the obvious answer to these two questions.
While this is a highly publicized issue, the majority of
stories reported deal with the criminal and his rights rather
than the rights of the victim and their family. Rarely do you
hear stories about the victims and their loved ones left behind.
You don’t read about 13-year-old Karen Patterson, who was
shot and killed in her bed in North
Charleston, SC. She was murdered
by her neighbor, Joe Atkins, who
had recently been released fi'om
prison after serving ten years of
a life sentence. After shooting
Patterson, he then murdered his
adopted father, who, ironically,
had worked hard to get his son’s
parole. You don’t hear about the
children of Kenneth Boyd, ages
13, 12 and 10, who watched as their father shot and killed
their mother and grandfather. These children experienced a
horrible event, the likes of which the majority of Americans
have only seen on TV.
The act of murder, in this context, is nearly unfathomable
and is worthy of a punishment that matches the crime. A life
sentence does not seem to adequately fit the crime. As seen
in the case of Atkins, a life sentence is not necessarily what it
sounds. In some states, convicted first-degree murderers have
been given a life sentence with the option of parole after a
certain number of years. The sentence of life without parole
is reserved for those who jurors believe do not have the right
to life outside of confinement.
The death penalty is only used in extreme cases. Jurors, who
represent the public voice, have done a good job of reserving
the death penalty for the crimes that were most deserving.
With an average of 15,000 murders per year and just over
1,000 executions in the last 30 years, juries have reserved
capital punishment for the worst of the worst.
Many critics argue that capital punishment is too expensive.
A death penalty case will cost the state at least 40 percent
more than a case seeking life without parole. For many, this
is adequate explanation that the death penalty is ineffective
and unnecessary. However, the average lethal injection dose
costs $86.08. The surplus costs to the state lie in the excessive
numbers of appeals, personal restraint petitions and the
elongated trial period. When examining cost, it may be more
important to change the legal procedures rather than doing
away with the penalty.
The job ofthe American justice system is to protect society.
If it is our duty to protect ourselves and our loved ones, then
capital punishment is the most effective way to do so.
Statistics and information from pro-deathpenalty.com
The Constitution says that there shall be no “cruel and
unusual punishment.” There is no exact line that says where
“necessary” ends and “cruel and unusual” begins, but how can
ending someone’s life not be cruel and unusual? The additional
killing of human beings cannot be beneficial to our country
and it makes our government just as bad as the Saddams and
Castros it is condemning.
Killing someone cannot be undone, and in some cases is
done to innocent people. Juries
don’t always give the correct
verdict, and no matter how much
the evidence stacks up against a
person, it is possible that they are
innocent. There have been many
reported instances in which people
on death row have been proven not
guilty, including a case in North
By Kathleen Boudreau Carolina in which Alan Cell was
on death row for eight years due to
vital evidence being withheld. Finally it was proven that there
was no possible way that Cell could have committed the crinie
and he was set free. Had the state had its way, an innocent man
would have been killed for a murder that he did not commit.
Some think that if the death penalty is abolished, there will
be criminals roaming the streets. 37 out of 38 states that allow
the death penalty offer life in prison without the opportunity
for parole as an alternative, so no convicted murderers will be
freed if capital punishment is abolished. Life in prison keeps
our government from becoming murderers and still is a very
harsh punishment for people who commit horrible crimes.
Criminals would also have a lifetime to pay back society
for their crimes through the mandatory service required of
prisoners. Killing these criminals would be a waste of a life
that could be spent in service to their victims.
If the death penalty was a good crime deterrent, it might
be more acceptable statistically, even if not morally. However,
it cannot be proven that the death penalty stops crime more
effectively than any other punishment, so there is no reason
why the government should still use this inhumane form of
punishment. With over half of the countries in the world having
abolished the death penalty, the United States is a member
of a quickly shrinking minority of nations that maintains this
form of punishment. Countries are realizing the inhumanity
of capital punishment and are putting an end to this savage
practice. In 2005, 94 percent of all known executions took
place in four countries: China, Iran, Saudi Arabia and the U.S..
To be included in a statistic’ about capital punishment with
beacons of human rights as Iran and Saudi Arabia is shocking.
It is deplorable that the U.S. cannot process the idea that we
are in league with the very terrorist nations that we speak out
against. The death penalty makes our government and our
country just as much to blame as the criminals we are putting
to death, and that needs to change.