Capital Punishment Essay -- essays research papers

Capital punishment is the execution of criminals by the state for committing crimes so wicked that it is the only acceptable punishment. The debate over the death penalty has endured for years and has become increasingly controversial. According to an article written by Richard Worsnop, entitled "Death Penalty Debate Centers on Retribution," in 1966, 42% of Americans were in favor of capital punishment while 47% were opposed to it; in 1986, support for capital punishment was 80% for and only 17% against with 3% undecided. Most of the undecided voters said they would support capital punishment, if they had to vote on it immediately. Currently, public approval of the death penalty is about 70%. While some people are opposed to capital punishment, the majority is in favor of it. Therefore, the United States government should strictly enforce capital punishment in every state. Admittedly, the act of killing someone is immoral and "Thou shall not kill" is one of God's commandments. However, if it were not for the threat of execution, the murder rate in the United States would be far greater. According to the United States Bureau of Justice bulletin on capital punishment (1989), from 1955 to 1965, there were 78,500 murders and 351 executions in the United States; but from 1966 to 1976, when the death penalty was weakened, 288,310 murders were committed and only six executions were carried out. In order for capital punishment to work as d...