The Death Penalty

Paper Summary:

This paper provides an overall look at the death penalty debate. It begins with a history of capital punishment from 18th Century B.C Babylon to present-day Japan and United States. The paper takes a look at the opinions of both death penalty proponents and abolitionists and examines how the debate is reflected in moral values and public opinion. The author concludes with the opinion that, if true justice is to be served in a blind and non-discriminatory manner, the bar for imposing the death penalty should be raised.

Paper Outline:
Introduction
History
Nature of Debates
Debate as Related to Ideological and Cultural Values
Public Opinion
Conclusion
Bibliography

From the Paper:

"One of the biggest fears of abolitionists is the irreversibility of an execution. Statistics show that since 1900, in this country, there have been on the average more than four cases each year in which an entirely innocent person was convicted of murder. Scores of these individuals were sentenced to death. In many cases, a reprieve or commutation arrived just hours, or even minutes, before the scheduled execution. These erroneous convictions have occurred in virtually every jurisdiction from one end of the nation to the other."

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