Capital Punishment in America :: Argumentative Persuasive Essays

Capital Punishment in America The concept of "a life for a life" is "as old as civilization itself" (McCiellan 9). Capital punishment, the legal taking of the life of a criminal, has been utilized in response to three distinct catagories of offense. The three categories are: crimes against the person; crimes against property; and crimes which endanger the security of the nation (Horwitz 13). Capital punishment is still in use in the United States today, but has been abolished by many countries (II 536). The countries that still have the death penalty on their books, rarely employ it . The earliest writings on the subject dates as far back as 2000 B. C., but it is clear that capital punishment more or less has existed since the birth of mankind (Szumski 25). Throughout history, it has been exercised in almost all civilizations as a retribution for severe crimes, but sometimes also for the thrill and excitement. The Romans put slaves and prisoners in the Coliseum as lion food while spectators enjoyed the sight (Horwitz 13). In the early colonial states, the death penalty was applied for a vast number of crimes, just like in England, the ruler of the states in this era (II 536). In England, in the 18th century, there were approximately 220 offenses punishable by death. Some of them would today be considered as misdemeanors and petty crimes (i. e. shooting of a rabbit, the theft of a pocket handkerchief, and to cut down a cherry tree) (Horwitz 13). The majority of these were crimes dealing with property. However, transportation became an alternative to execution in the 17th century. A lot of these criminals were shipped to the U.S. (28). In the early days of our Constitution, the only segments that showed that the death penalty existed were two amendments in the Bill of Rights (Landau 11). These amendments deal with protection and rights of the accused. The fifth amendment prohibits the state from depriving an individual of life without due process of law. The eight amendment prohibits "cruel and unusual" punishment. The Supreme Court has still not determined what this phrase means. In one case in the 1890s, the question was if capital punishment violated the eight amendment. The court relied on the matter that "a definition of cruel and unusual punishment must reflect the evolving standards of decency that mark the progress of a maturing society" (14). Surveys from this era show that a majority of the people favored the death penalty. In the Middle Ages, capital punishment was also applied to animals