thesis statement about death penalties

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Death Penalty Essay Introduction — a Quick Guide

Table of Contents

The death penalty is a state-sanctioned practice where an individual is executed for an offense punishable through such means. Death penalty essay is a common topic given to students where the essay writer argues this controversial issue and takes a stand. The death penalty essay intro consists of the opening sentence, the background information, and the thesis statement.

Writing a compelling introduction isn’t easy. But with the tips and examples in this guide, you’ll be able to write a captivating introduction.

What Is a Death Penalty Essay?

The death penalty is the practice of executing a person guilty of capital murder, a crime in which the loss of life is intentional. This method of punishment has been around for as long as human civilization.

The death penalty has been controversial for a long time, with people on both sides of the fence. Supporters claim it works to deter crime, but there is no evidence to prove it. Opposers claim it is cruel and is not the best way to serve justice. 

A death penalty essay argues for or against the death penalty. This essay topic is a typical assignment given to college students. Common death penalty essay topics are as follows:

• About the Death Penalty
• Does the Death Penalty effectively deter crime?
• The Death Penalty should not be legal
• The Death Penalty should be abolished.
• Death Penalty and Justice
• Pro-Death Penalty
• Is the Death Penalty Morally Right?
• Death Penalty is Immoral
• Religious Values and Death Penalty
• Ineffectiveness of Death Penalty
• Punishment and the Nature of the Crime
• The Death Penalty and Juveniles.
• Is the Death Penalty Effective?
• The Death Penalty is Politically Just
• The Death Penalty: Right or Wrong?
• Abolishment of the Death Penalty
• The Death Penalty and People’s Opinions
• Is Death Penalty Humane?

How to Write an Interesting Death Penalty Essay Intro

Like other essays, the death penalty essay intro comprises three parts. The hook, a strong opening sentence, grips the reader, sparks their curiosity, and compels them to read the rest of the piece.

Subsequent sentences provide background information on the topic and define the argument’s terms. The last part is the thesis statement, which summarizes the central focus of the essay.

1. the Opening Sentence/Hook

The hook is a statement that grips the reader’s attention and makes them want to read on . The hook should be an exciting statement that sparks the readers’ curiosity, and sets the tone for the essay. It should give an overview of the topic. You could begin with a thought-provoking question, an interesting quote, an exciting anecdote, or a shocking statistic or fact. 

2. Background Information

Provide more information about the subject you are discussing. Create context and give background information on the topic. It could be a social or historical context. Define key terms that the reader might find confusing and clearly but concisely state why the issue is important.

3. Thesis Statement

The thesis statement is the overarching idea – the central focus of the essay. It summarizes the idea that you’ll be explaining throughout the entirety of the piece. Once this statement has been established, you’ll smoothly transition into the main body of your essay. Make the thesis clear and concise. 

Death Penalty Essay Introduction Example

Does the death penalty deter crime, especially murder? The death penalty has been controversial for years. Over the years, public opinion about the death penalty seems to have changed. But there are still people who think it is a proper punishment. I have heard the phrase “An eye for an eye” most of my life. Most people firmly believe that if a criminal took someone’s life, their lives should be taken away too. But I don’t think that will discourage anyone from committing crimes. I believe that the criminal should be given a lighter punishment. 

The death penalty or capital punishment is the execution of a criminal by a government as punishment for a crime. In the United States, the death penalty is the most common form of sentence in murder cases.

A death penalty essay argues for or against the death penalty. The essay introduction begins with an attention-grabber , followed by background information on the topic and then the thesis statement.

Abir Ghenaiet

Abir is a data analyst and researcher. Among her interests are artificial intelligence, machine learning, and natural language processing. As a humanitarian and educator, she actively supports women in tech and promotes diversity.

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Death Penalty Argumentative Essay; Topics, Arguments, Outline

Sat Sep 25 2021

By Nickdeda

Are you stranded about that assignment that requires you to write a death penalty argumentative essay? Don’t panic. This article is your ultimate guide. Read how to present your arguments while outlining your essay.

What Is Death Penalty?

Death penalty essays revolve around writing about murder executions. Although this topic's debate is controversial, its proponents argue that the death penalty offers retribution to the grieving family. They also contend that it costs less than life imprisonment. On the other hand, opponents to the death penalty argue that it gives the government the power to take out human life, which shouldn't be the case.

What Is A Pro Argument For Death Penalty?

A pro argument in a death penalty persuasive essay revolves around dissecting the pros of the punishment. For instance, perpetrators of heinous crimes are executed, and the US Supreme Court upholds the death penalty as a constitution. A statement of this nature is considered a pro argument when discussing death penalties in the US.

What Are Some Arguments For The Death Penalty?

When assigned death penalty argumentative essays, it is prudent to research extensively to identify the topic's schools of thought. Note that in an argumentative essay, you need to pick a side. Some of the arguments in a death penalty argumentative essay include:

1.       Legality concerns. Although the US is among 55 countries nationwide to constitute the law, some countries still debate the legitimacy of the death penalty.

2.       Life without parole. Opponents to the death penalty law argue that life imprisonment without parole is a more reasonable alternative to killing.

3.       Pre-emption of criminal activities. Proponents argue that by killing offenders, people become afraid of crime due to the harsh penalty.

4.       Retribution. Arguers of the death penalty law argue that victims' families feel that justice is avenged for their deceased by killing perpetrators.

5.       Morality. The debate on ethics has been posed by both religious, secular and legal arms as to how moral the act of killing is when justifying punishment.

How To Write Death Penalty Should Be Abolished Essay

Students must understand that the context of this topic is opposition. Therefore your counterarguments should clearly define why you object to the death penalty law. To help you do so, you must read plenty of information sources to help you come up with the best points.

How To Write A Death Penalty Argumentative Essay Introduction

Catchy, concise and memorable. That’s the way to go when writing a death penalty introduction. The opening determines whether readers will continue reading the essay or not. Therefore, you ought to come with a great way to welcome them into reading the paper. For example:

To the law, Bashir was a criminal. But to his mother, a son, and his girlfriend expressed that he was the sweetest boyfriend she ever had. With him executed, his loved ones felt that the law purported to uphold policies couldn't protect its own. Traumatized and even victimized, how would this family ever get consoled?

By reading the above introduction, your audience feels the need to delve deeper into it. Therefore, the transition to your body should connect seamlessly while bringing out your most vital thoughts against the death penalty.

How To Write A Death Penalty Argumentative Essay Thesis

The thesis statement provides a detailed view of what an essay will be discussing. Therefore, your entire essay will be based on expounding on this argument. Since your essay is argumentative, your thesis proclamation should be argumentative too. It should let readers know the side of the argument your paper stands for. For example;

·          Death penalty is a law against humanity.

·          How do you dictate that someone deserves death?

·          Is the death penalty retribution to victims' families?

How to Write a Death Penalty Argumentative Essay Body

The body of an essay should clearly outline your different arguments. Defined by paragraphs, always ensure to sub-divide your viewpoints in the following manner:

·          1 st paragraph- The most crucial reason for objecting death penalty

·          2 nd paragraph- Another vital argument against death penalty

·          3 rd paragraph- The point with the least impact

Although all points are strong, scholars advocate to align thoughts based on impact. This is because, it is easy to lose readers when your paper is poorly structured and formatted.

How To Write A Death Penalty Argumentative Essay Conclusion

The summary of your death penalty argumentative essay should recap your discussions and a stamp for your thesis statement. Ensure you emphasize it, attempting to make readers see your sense. Finally, as you bring the essay to a close, be sure to leave readers with a parting shot or food for thought statement.

We offer an excellent alternative if you still don't feel inspired to tackle the death penalty argumentative essay. Request our professional authors and take advantage of our fantastic deals. You bet you'll submit an impressive assignment worthy of nothing less than an A.

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Finding Sources for Death Penalty Research

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• Writing Research Papers
• Writing Essays
• English Grammar
• M.Ed., Education Administration, University of Georgia
• B.A., History, Armstrong State University

One of the most popular topics for an argument essay is the death penalty . When researching a topic for an argumentative essay , accuracy is important, which means the quality of your sources is important.

If you're writing a paper about the death penalty, you can start with this list of sources, which provide arguments for all sides of the topic.

Amnesty International Site

Amnesty International views the death penalty as "the ultimate, irreversible denial of human rights." This website provides a gold mine of statistics and the latest breaking news on the subject.

Mental Illness on Death Row

Death Penalty Focus is an organization that aims to bring about the abolition of capital punishment and is a great resource for information. You will find evidence that many of the people executed over the past decades are affected by a form of mental illness or disability.

Pros and Cons of the Death Penalty

This extensive article provides an overview of arguments for and against the death penalty and offers a history of notable events that have shaped the discourse for activists and proponents.

Pro-Death Penalty Links

This page comes from ProDeathPenalty and contains a state-by-state guide to capital punishment resources. You'll also find a list of papers written by students on topics related to capital punishment. 

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84 Capital Punishment Essay Topics & Examples

If you’ve looked for capital punishment essay topics, you’re in luck! Below, our experts have collected some death penalty title ideas and samples for your paper.

📝 Capital Punishment Essay Writing Tips

✔️ top death penalty title ideas, 🏆 best death penalty essay titles & examples, 💡 most interesting death penalty topics to write about, ❓ capital punishment research questions.

Capital punishment has been a debatable issue for decades. Some people believe that the death penalty plays a crucial role in the criminal justice system, while others think that this procedure is highly unethical.

An essay on capital punishment may be a challenging assignment because students should know much about the subject. Do not worry, we have got you covered! Read this article until the end and learn some important tips on writing capital punishment essays.

Start with choosing the subject for your paper. Here are some capital punishment essay topics that you can use:

• Capital punishment in the media
• Crime and punishment in today’s world: Death penalty
• Capital punishment essay: Arguments against death penalty
• The legal and ethical implications of capital punishment
• Capital punishment should be forbidden: Anti-death penalty arguments
• Why capital punishment may target the poor
• Death penalty: An issue of life and death

Remember that these are just examples of topics and titles for your paper. You can choose any related capital punishment essay titles. Once you have selected a topic of your essay, you can start working on the assignment. Here are the key points you should use to write an outstanding essay:

• Study the subject thoroughly. Use reliable sources to analyze the legal and ethical aspects of the death penalty. Select the sources you will use in the paper and remember that they should be credible.
• A well-developed outline is key. Make sure that your paper includes an introduction, a conclusion, and several body paragraphs.
• If you are not sure about the structure of your paper, check out essays online to see how they are organized. This step can also help you to see whether the selected problem is relevant. Remember that you should avoid copying the information you will find online. Plagiarism will make your essay look unreliable and get you a bad grade.
• Remember that you should present your capital punishment essay thesis in the last sentence of your introductory paragraph. Hint: Start working on your introductory paragraph after you research the subject. It will help you to present the background information correctly.
• Identify the goals of your paper clearly. Do you want to prove your point or provide insight on the issue? Answer these questions before starting to work on your assignment.
• Define capital punishment. You can discuss its legal implications, its prevalence in different countries, and the offenses that can potentially lead to a death penalty.
• When working on an opinion piece, state your viewpoint clearly. Do you think that all countries should legalize death penalties? Do you believe that capital punishment is unethical? Do some offenders deserve a death penalty more than others do? Answer these questions in detail.
• Remember that the purpose of your paper should be to help the reader understand capital punishment better. Your essay should motivate the audience to develop an opinion about the subject.
• Always support your arguments with evidence. Cite articles in an appropriate style (MLA, APA, Harvard, or other). The best type of sources for your paper is peer-reviewed articles and other scholarly publications.
• Restate your arguments and the thesis in a concluding section. Provide a summary of your findings along with recommendations for future research.

Need more ideas for your essay? Check out our free samples on the website!

• Why should the death penalty be abolished?
• What are some unusual punishments for crimes?
• Can the death penalty be compared to killing in cold blood?
• Is life imprisonment more just than the death penalty?
• Reasons to criticize capital punishment in China.
• Analyzing A Descending Spiral by Marc Bookman.
• What are the pros of capital punishment?
• Executing the innocent people: the issue of mistake.
• Abolishing the death penalty in Texas.
• Serial killers sentenced to capital punishment.
• Death Penalty: Utilitarian View on Capital Punishment Another significant benefit offered by the death penalty to the society is that it leads to the permanent incapacitation of the convicted person.
• Capital Punishment in the UK Should be Reintroduced? ‘Capital Punishment’ or the ‘Death Penalty’ is the judicially ordered, lawful infliction of death as a punishment for a serious crime called a ‘capital offence’ or a ‘capital crime.
• Capital Punishment and Deterrence of Crime For the case of murder or crimes that necessitate capital punishment, the incentive to commit murder is directly related to the uncertainties that punishments for the crime will generate.
• Capital Punishment: Advantages and Disadvantages This paper examines death penalty from an impartial view by considering disadvantages and advantages of capital punishment in society. Thirdly, Teeters views that death penalty is a retribution action in which a victim is punished […]
• Analysis: Speech In Favor of Capital Punishment by John Stuart Mills Mills rightly points out that the very grounds of humanity used to support the removal of the death penalty should also be the ones used to support retaining of the sentence.
• Capital Punishment Role in the World However, it is wrong and unjustified because it is inhuman, unfair, violates the human right to life, and it does not aid in reduction of crime.
• The Ethical and Legal Standards of Capital Punishment This is one of the details that should be considered. This is one of the pitfalls that should be avoided.
• Moral Issue of Capital Punishment Capital punishment is also a form of premeditated death as the action is planned for, does it mean that the state has the right to premeditate deaths for some of its citizens because they are […]
• Capital Punishment and the Death Penalty Furthermore, the defense and, in the United States, the prosecution has the right of vexatious challenge, which allows it to confront several participants without providing a reason.
• Capital Punishment Is Morally and Legally Wrong The problem of the death penalty is complex and multifaceted. It affects the political, legal, moral, cultural, and other fields of life.
• Justifications for Capital Punishment This statement mostly appeals to a general deterrence argument, as the fear of punishment emerged from showing its implementation, but not from other justifications effects.
• The Significance of Capital Punishment in the UAE Current analysis of the importance of the death penalty worldwide focuses on the advantages and disadvantages of the punishment. The UAE has a mandatory death penalty which is susceptible to the judgment of authorities and […]
• Capital Punishment: Utilitarianism and Retributivism Theories However, to rule out chances of an innocent person being punished, the theory advocates for justice; before punishment is administered, the court should proof beyond reasonable doubt that the accused is guilty.
• Capital Punishment Interpretation and Exceptions Under custody, the law applies to cases in which the conditions of custody are compromised and to situations where the suspect is held unfairly. The suspect responded with a yes and this was used as […]
• Capital Punishment Debates: Death Penalty The capital punishment has been practiced in almost all the societies and all epochs in the development of the mankind. The author educates the society as a whole on litigious issues of the death penalty […]
• Capital Punishment in Florida The system is erroneous and cases that almost end up in the ‘chair’ are overturned contrary to the expectations of the family members of the murdered.
• Capital Punishment: Term Definition In that regard, taking such issues such as euthanasia, abortion and capital punishment, the latter can be considered as the most delicate, especially considering many cases that represent exceptions that are feared to be repeated.
• Capital Punishment – Moral or Immoral? It would not be a futile exercise to interpret capital punishment in the light of religion before proceeding to the subject of my argument. Countries that give importance to such punishments should tone down and […]
• Capital Punishment in the US Analysis Capital Punishment is the lawful infliction of death as a punishment for a major crime. The first argument against Capital Punishment is that it is inhumane.
• An Orwellian Look at Capital Punishment His reaction to the actual hanging of a puny Hindu man borders on a strategy of remaining as a detached viewer and subconsciously, his gorge rises at the thought of a human being with a […]
• Public Opinion on Capital Punishment for Juveniles This essay is a study of the public opinion on Capital Punishment for juveniles, this is a very controversial subject as many people are against Captial punishment, and many are for life imprisonment, capital punishment […]
• Capital Punishment and Race Factor in the US First of all, it is necessary to briefly discuss the history of race in the U.S.to provide a foundation for the bias and explain its causes.
• The Controversy Over Capital Punishment It is as a result of this that he concludes that Ford calls for the execution of capital punishment as a penalty in criminal offences.
• Capital Punishment in Melville’s “Billy Budd, Sailor” One of the reasons for the triumph of Billy Budd, Sailor in America and the United Kingdom, was the precision, with which the author portrayed the historical and cultural context, particularly Melville analyzed both issues […]
• Capital Punishment in Indonesia The government is also known to safeguard the details of capital punishment in the country. The targeted prisoners are “executed in the middle of the night”.
• Capital Punishment, Its Ethics and Infair Justice The main factors leading to differences in stands between the anti-capital punishment and pro-death are the morality and religious issues surrounding the matter.
• Capital Punishment and Unusual Punishment The issue of capital punishment has always been on the radar of the Supreme Court of the United States. The key question that should be answered is the future of capital punishment and unusual punishment […]
• Capital Punishment in United States The most compelling argument in support of capital punishment is that failing to execute murderers may in itself put more lives in danger.
• Debates on Capital Punishment in the US For example, capital punishment is the best punishment for murder because it is equal to the crime. Thirdly, capital punishment is a violation of the human right to life.
• Isolation and Capital Punishments On the other hand, capital punishments such as deaths deprives of people the freedom of life and goes against God’s command which disallows intentional killings of persons, or murder. Similarly, capital punishment in the form […]
• Does the Death Sentence Offer Justice to the Criminal? It is not enough to be locked in prison for ending the life of a fellow human being. Revenge is one of the ways that can be used.
• The Consequences of Capital Punishment The appeals in the death penalty cases are usually many and cause the social costs of the cases to be even more expensive.
• The Death Penalty Debate in the United States of America The punishment is believed to have been there even at the time of the earlier colonies of the United States; it as well continued to be in force within the states that came to form […]
• Psychological Aspects of Capital Punishment According to research done by Freedman and Hemenway on a group of death row inmates, it was established that almost a two-thirds of the death row inmates are retarded.
• The Death Penalty in the Modern Society The cost of maintenance of the convicted individuals is also one of the reasons that necessitate the death penalty. The reaffirmation of the death penalty is also attributed to the teachings portrayed by most religions.
• Avoiding of Capital Punishment Capital punishment is also unnecessary since there are better ways of punishing criminals such as life imprisonment to keep the society in order and at peace.
• The Economic Significance of Capital Punishment The survival of any civilization hinges on the establishment of laws and codes of conduct and the subsequent obeying of the same by the society’s members.
• Capital Punishment in Modern American History: Lists of Capital Crimes That Varied From Region to Region Politicians are frequently trying to expand the scope of capital punishment by bringing in a host of crimes under it.”The US public has deep concern over violent crimes due to the cynical manipulation of capital […]
• Analysis of Capital Punishment in the Films Those for the death penalty in the movie are represented by Ramunda who becomes a strong advocate for the death penalty and in many instances, is a counterpart of Cushing.
• Capital Punishment Legislation The main reasons that opponents of the death penalty give for their position are, the fact that the death penalty is inhumane and cruel.
• Capital Punishment as an Option in Maryland Death penalty is the most serious punishment that can be used by the government against people; and even if it costs less then keeping a person in jail till the end of his/her life and […]
• Capital Punishment in Political View This is because quiet a number of the abolitions have been associated with democratic developments in political systems of the countries that have abolished the penalties. Conservatives have in the United States been strongly opposed […]
• Capital Punishment: A Critical Evaluation of Its Appropriateness in Modern Society In line with the above argument, supporters of capital punishment argue that the practice permanently removes thieves, murderers, rapists, and other criminals from the face of society, in the process making it safer for compliant […]
• Capital Punishment: Proponents and Opponents Arguements The opponents of capital of capital punishment argue that it is not a just and humane way of punishing heinous criminals in the society because everybody has right to life.
• What Does Capital Punishment Mean in History?
• How Can Death Penalty Prevent Repeat Offenders?
• Why Should Capital Punishment Be Reinstated in Australia?
• How Objective and Justifiable Are Our Reasons for Enforcing the Death Penalty?
• Does Capital Punishment Have a Deterrent Effect?
• How Has the Death Penalty Changed Over Time?
• What Is Wrong With Capital Punishment?
• Should Federal Courts Review State Death Penalty Cases?
• Can Capital Punishment Ever Be Justified?
• Should the Death Penalty Apply to Juvenile Criminals?
• Does the Death Penalty Breach Human Rights?
• Can Capital Punishment Keep Us Safe?
• Should the Death Penalty Be a Part of the System of Justice?
• Does Capital Punishment Equate to Cruel and Unusual Punishment?
• Should the Death Penalty Be Enforced?
• How Does Capital Punishment Affirm Life?
• Should the Death Penalty Be Imposed for Drug Offences?
• Does Capital Punishment Have a Local Deterrent Effect on Homicides?
• Should the Death Penalty Be Mandatory for Homicide?
• How Does Capital Punishment Work in the United States?
• Should the Death Penalty Be Morally Acceptable?
• Does Race Affect the Way of Capital Punishment?
• What Crimes Are Charged With Death Penalty?
• Does the Capital Punishment Have a Role in Civilized Society?
• Why Should Capital Punishment Be Abolished?
• What Effects Does the Death Penalty Cause on Society?
• How Does Legislation Help to Prevent Racial Bias in Death Penalty Convictions?
• Is the Death Penalty Fair?
• Does Jodi Arias Deserve the Death Penalty?
• What Attitudes Might Christians Hold About Capital Punishment?
• Chicago (A-D)
• Chicago (N-B)

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Arguments for and Against the Death Penalty

Click the buttons below to view arguments and testimony on each topic.

The death penalty deters future murders.

Society has always used punishment to discourage would-be criminals from unlawful action. Since society has the highest interest in preventing murder, it should use the strongest punishment available to deter murder, and that is the death penalty. If murderers are sentenced to death and executed, potential murderers will think twice before killing for fear of losing their own life.

For years, criminologists analyzed murder rates to see if they fluctuated with the likelihood of convicted murderers being executed, but the results were inconclusive. Then in 1973 Isaac Ehrlich employed a new kind of analysis which produced results showing that for every inmate who was executed, 7 lives were spared because others were deterred from committing murder. Similar results have been produced by disciples of Ehrlich in follow-up studies.

Moreover, even if some studies regarding deterrence are inconclusive, that is only because the death penalty is rarely used and takes years before an execution is actually carried out. Punishments which are swift and sure are the best deterrent. The fact that some states or countries which do not use the death penalty have lower murder rates than jurisdictions which do is not evidence of the failure of deterrence. States with high murder rates would have even higher rates if they did not use the death penalty.

Ernest van den Haag, a Professor of Jurisprudence at Fordham University who has studied the question of deterrence closely, wrote: “Even though statistical demonstrations are not conclusive, and perhaps cannot be, capital punishment is likely to deter more than other punishments because people fear death more than anything else. They fear most death deliberately inflicted by law and scheduled by the courts. Whatever people fear most is likely to deter most. Hence, the threat of the death penalty may deter some murderers who otherwise might not have been deterred. And surely the death penalty is the only penalty that could deter prisoners already serving a life sentence and tempted to kill a guard, or offenders about to be arrested and facing a life sentence. Perhaps they will not be deterred. But they would certainly not be deterred by anything else. We owe all the protection we can give to law enforcers exposed to special risks.”

Finally, the death penalty certainly “deters” the murderer who is executed. Strictly speaking, this is a form of incapacitation, similar to the way a robber put in prison is prevented from robbing on the streets. Vicious murderers must be killed to prevent them from murdering again, either in prison, or in society if they should get out. Both as a deterrent and as a form of permanent incapacitation, the death penalty helps to prevent future crime.

Those who believe that deterrence justifies the execution of certain offenders bear the burden of proving that the death penalty is a deterrent. The overwhelming conclusion from years of deterrence studies is that the death penalty is, at best, no more of a deterrent than a sentence of life in prison. The Ehrlich studies have been widely discredited. In fact, some criminologists, such as William Bowers of Northeastern University, maintain that the death penalty has the opposite effect: that is, society is brutalized by the use of the death penalty, and this increases the likelihood of more murder. Even most supporters of the death penalty now place little or no weight on deterrence as a serious justification for its continued use.

States in the United States that do not employ the death penalty generally have lower murder rates than states that do. The same is true when the U.S. is compared to countries similar to it. The U.S., with the death penalty, has a higher murder rate than the countries of Europe or Canada, which do not use the death penalty.

The death penalty is not a deterrent because most people who commit murders either do not expect to be caught or do not carefully weigh the differences between a possible execution and life in prison before they act. Frequently, murders are committed in moments of passion or anger, or by criminals who are substance abusers and acted impulsively. As someone who presided over many of Texas’s executions, former Texas Attorney General Jim Mattox has remarked, “It is my own experience that those executed in Texas were not deterred by the existence of the death penalty law. I think in most cases you’ll find that the murder was committed under severe drug and alcohol abuse.”

There is no conclusive proof that the death penalty acts as a better deterrent than the threat of life imprisonment. A 2012 report released by the prestigious National Research Council of the National Academies and based on a review of more than three decades of research, concluded that studies claiming a deterrent effect on murder rates from the death penalty are fundamentally flawed. A survey of the former and present presidents of the country’s top academic criminological societies found that 84% of these experts rejected the notion that research had demonstrated any deterrent effect from the death penalty .

Once in prison, those serving life sentences often settle into a routine and are less of a threat to commit violence than other prisoners. Moreover, most states now have a sentence of life without parole. Prisoners who are given this sentence will never be released. Thus, the safety of society can be assured without using the death penalty.

Ernest van den Haag Professor of Jurisprudence and Public Policy, Fordham University. Excerpts from ” The Ultimate Punishment: A Defense,” (Harvard Law Review Association, 1986)

“Execution of those who have committed heinous murders may deter only one murder per year. If it does, it seems quite warranted. It is also the only fitting retribution for murder I can think of.”

“Most abolitionists acknowledge that they would continue to favor abolition even if the death penalty were shown to deter more murders than alternatives could deter. Abolitionists appear to value the life of a convicted murderer or, at least, his non-execution, more highly than they value the lives of the innocent victims who might be spared by deterring prospective murderers.

Deterrence is not altogether decisive for me either. I would favor retention of the death penalty as retribution even if it were shown that the threat of execution could not deter prospective murderers not already deterred by the threat of imprisonment. Still, I believe the death penalty, because of its finality, is more feared than imprisonment, and deters some prospective murderers not deterred by the thought of imprisonment. Sparing the lives of even a few prospective victims by deterring their murderers is more important than preserving the lives of convicted murderers because of the possibility, or even the probability, that executing them would not deter others. Whereas the life of the victims who might be saved are valuable, that of the murderer has only negative value, because of his crime. Surely the criminal law is meant to protect the lives of potential victims in preference to those of actual murderers.”

“We threaten punishments in order to deter crime. We impose them not only to make the threats credible but also as retribution (justice) for the crimes that were not deterred. Threats and punishments are necessary to deter and deterrence is a sufficient practical justification for them. Retribution is an independent moral justification. Although penalties can be unwise, repulsive, or inappropriate, and those punished can be pitiable, in a sense the infliction of legal punishment on a guilty person cannot be unjust. By committing the crime, the criminal volunteered to assume the risk of receiving a legal punishment that he could have avoided by not committing the crime. The punishment he suffers is the punishment he voluntarily risked suffering and, therefore, it is no more unjust to him than any other event for which one knowingly volunteers to assume the risk. Thus, the death penalty cannot be unjust to the guilty criminal.”

Full text can be found at PBS.org .

Hugo Adam Bedau (deceased) Austin Fletcher Professor of Philosophy, Tufts University Excerpts from “The Case Against The Death Penalty” (Copyright 1997, American Civil Liberties Union)

“Persons who commit murder and other crimes of personal violence either may or may not premeditate their crimes.

When crime is planned, the criminal ordinarily concentrates on escaping detection, arrest, and conviction. The threat of even the severest punishment will not discourage those who expect to escape detection and arrest. It is impossible to imagine how the threat of any punishment could prevent a crime that is not premeditated….

Most capital crimes are committed in the heat of the moment. Most capital crimes are committed during moments of great emotional stress or under the influence of drugs or alcohol, when logical thinking has been suspended. In such cases, violence is inflicted by persons heedless of the consequences to themselves as well as to others….

If, however, severe punishment can deter crime, then long-term imprisonment is severe enough to deter any rational person from committing a violent crime.

The vast preponderance of the evidence shows that the death penalty is no more effective than imprisonment in deterring murder and that it may even be an incitement to criminal violence. Death-penalty states as a group do not have lower rates of criminal homicide than non-death-penalty states….

On-duty police officers do not suffer a higher rate of criminal assault and homicide in abolitionist states than they do in death-penalty states. Between l973 and l984, for example, lethal assaults against police were not significantly more, or less, frequent in abolitionist states than in death-penalty states. There is ‘no support for the view that the death penalty provides a more effective deterrent to police homicides than alternative sanctions. Not for a single year was evidence found that police are safer in jurisdictions that provide for capital punishment.’ (Bailey and Peterson, Criminology (1987))

Prisoners and prison personnel do not suffer a higher rate of criminal assault and homicide from life-term prisoners in abolition states than they do in death-penalty states. Between 1992 and 1995, 176 inmates were murdered by other prisoners; the vast majority (84%) were killed in death penalty jurisdictions. During the same period about 2% of all assaults on prison staff were committed by inmates in abolition jurisdictions. Evidently, the threat of the death penalty ‘does not even exert an incremental deterrent effect over the threat of a lesser punishment in the abolitionist states.’ (Wolfson, in Bedau, ed., The Death Penalty in America, 3rd ed. (1982))

Actual experience thus establishes beyond a reasonable doubt that the death penalty does not deter murder. No comparable body of evidence contradicts that conclusion.”

Click here for the full text from the ACLU website.

Retribution

A just society requires the taking of a life for a life.

When someone takes a life, the balance of justice is disturbed. Unless that balance is restored, society succumbs to a rule of violence. Only the taking of the murderer’s life restores the balance and allows society to show convincingly that murder is an intolerable crime which will be punished in kind.

Retribution has its basis in religious values, which have historically maintained that it is proper to take an “eye for an eye” and a life for a life.

Although the victim and the victim’s family cannot be restored to the status which preceded the murder, at least an execution brings closure to the murderer’s crime (and closure to the ordeal for the victim’s family) and ensures that the murderer will create no more victims.

For the most cruel and heinous crimes, the ones for which the death penalty is applied, offenders deserve the worst punishment under our system of law, and that is the death penalty. Any lesser punishment would undermine the value society places on protecting lives.

Robert Macy, District Attorney of Oklahoma City, described his concept of the need for retribution in one case: “In 1991, a young mother was rendered helpless and made to watch as her baby was executed. The mother was then mutilated and killed. The killer should not lie in some prison with three meals a day, clean sheets, cable TV, family visits and endless appeals. For justice to prevail, some killers just need to die.”

Retribution is another word for revenge. Although our first instinct may be to inflict immediate pain on someone who wrongs us, the standards of a mature society demand a more measured response.

The emotional impulse for revenge is not a sufficient justification for invoking a system of capital punishment, with all its accompanying problems and risks. Our laws and criminal justice system should lead us to higher principles that demonstrate a complete respect for life, even the life of a murderer. Encouraging our basest motives of revenge, which ends in another killing, extends the chain of violence. Allowing executions sanctions killing as a form of ‘pay-back.’

Many victims’ families denounce the use of the death penalty. Using an execution to try to right the wrong of their loss is an affront to them and only causes more pain. For example, Bud Welch’s daughter, Julie, was killed in the Oklahoma City bombing in 1995. Although his first reaction was to wish that those who committed this terrible crime be killed, he ultimately realized that such killing “is simply vengeance; and it was vengeance that killed Julie…. Vengeance is a strong and natural emotion. But it has no place in our justice system.”

The notion of an eye for an eye, or a life for a life, is a simplistic one which our society has never endorsed. We do not allow torturing the torturer, or raping the rapist. Taking the life of a murderer is a similarly disproportionate punishment, especially in light of the fact that the U.S. executes only a small percentage of those convicted of murder, and these defendants are typically not the worst offenders but merely the ones with the fewest resources to defend themselves.

Louis P. Pojman Author and Professor of Philosophy, U.S. Military Academy. Excerpt from “The Death Penalty: For and Against,” (Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc., 1998)

“[Opponents of the capital punishment often put forth the following argument:] Perhaps the murderer deserves to die, but what authority does the state have to execute him or her? Both the Old and New Testament says, “’Vengeance is mine, I will repay,’ says the Lord” (Prov. 25:21 and Romans 12:19). You need special authority to justify taking the life of a human being.

The objector fails to note that the New Testament passage continues with a support of the right of the state to execute criminals in the name of God: “Let every person be subjected to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God. Therefore he who resists what God has appointed, and those who resist will incur judgment…. If you do wrong, be afraid, for [the authority] does not bear the sword in vain; he is the servant of God to execute his wrath on the wrongdoer” (Romans 13: 1-4). So, according to the Bible, the authority to punish, which presumably includes the death penalty, comes from God.

But we need not appeal to a religious justification for capital punishment. We can site the state’s role in dispensing justice. Just as the state has the authority (and duty) to act justly in allocating scarce resources, in meeting minimal needs of its (deserving) citizens, in defending its citizens from violence and crime, and in not waging unjust wars; so too does it have the authority, flowing from its mission to promote justice and the good of its people, to punish the criminal. If the criminal, as one who has forfeited a right to life, deserves to be executed, especially if it will likely deter would-be murderers, the state has a duty to execute those convicted of first-degree murder.”

National Council of Synagogues and the Bishops’ Committee for Ecumenical and Interreligious Affairs of the National Conference of Catholic Bishops Excerpts from “To End the Death Penalty: A Report of the National Jewish/Catholic Consultation” (December, 1999)

“Some would argue that the death penalty is needed as a means of retributive justice, to balance out the crime with the punishment. This reflects a natural concern of society, and especially of victims and their families. Yet we believe that we are called to seek a higher road even while punishing the guilty, for example through long and in some cases life-long incarceration, so that the healing of all can ultimately take place.

Some would argue that the death penalty will teach society at large the seriousness of crime. Yet we say that teaching people to respond to violence with violence will, again, only breed more violence.

The strongest argument of all [in favor of the death penalty] is the deep pain and grief of the families of victims, and their quite natural desire to see punishment meted out to those who have plunged them into such agony. Yet it is the clear teaching of our traditions that this pain and suffering cannot be healed simply through the retribution of capital punishment or by vengeance. It is a difficult and long process of healing which comes about through personal growth and God’s grace. We agree that much more must be done by the religious community and by society at large to solace and care for the grieving families of the victims of violent crime.

Recent statements of the Reform and Conservative movements in Judaism, and of the U.S. Catholic Conference sum up well the increasingly strong convictions shared by Jews and Catholics…:

‘Respect for all human life and opposition to the violence in our society are at the root of our long-standing opposition (as bishops) to the death penalty. We see the death penalty as perpetuating a cycle of violence and promoting a sense of vengeance in our culture. As we said in Confronting the Culture of Violence: ‘We cannot teach that killing is wrong by killing.’ We oppose capital punishment not just for what it does to those guilty of horrible crimes, but for what it does to all of us as a society. Increasing reliance on the death penalty diminishes all of us and is a sign of growing disrespect for human life. We cannot overcome crime by simply executing criminals, nor can we restore the lives of the innocent by ending the lives of those convicted of their murders. The death penalty offers the tragic illusion that we can defend life by taking life.’1

We affirm that we came to these conclusions because of our shared understanding of the sanctity of human life. We have committed ourselves to work together, and each within our own communities, toward ending the death penalty.” Endnote 1. Statement of the Administrative Committee of the United States Catholic Conference, March 24, 1999.

The risk of executing the innocent precludes the use of the death penalty.

The death penalty alone imposes an irrevocable sentence. Once an inmate is executed, nothing can be done to make amends if a mistake has been made. There is considerable evidence that many mistakes have been made in sentencing people to death. Since 1973, over 180 people have been released from death row after evidence of their innocence emerged. During the same period of time, over 1,500 people have been executed. Thus, for every 8.3 people executed, we have found one person on death row who never should have been convicted. These statistics represent an intolerable risk of executing the innocent. If an automobile manufacturer operated with similar failure rates, it would be run out of business.

Our capital punishment system is unreliable. A study by Columbia University Law School found that two thirds of all capital trials contained serious errors. When the cases were retried, over 80% of the defendants were not sentenced to death and 7% were completely acquitted.

Many of the releases of innocent defendants from death row came about as a result of factors outside of the justice system. Recently, journalism students in Illinois were assigned to investigate the case of a man who was scheduled to be executed, after the system of appeals had rejected his legal claims. The students discovered that one witness had lied at the original trial, and they were able to find another man, who confessed to the crime on videotape and was later convicted of the murder. The innocent man who was released was very fortunate, but he was spared because of the informal efforts of concerned citizens, not because of the justice system.

In other cases, DNA testing has exonerated death row inmates. Here, too, the justice system had concluded that these defendants were guilty and deserving of the death penalty. DNA testing became available only in the early 1990s, due to advancements in science. If this testing had not been discovered until ten years later, many of these inmates would have been executed. And if DNA testing had been applied to earlier cases where inmates were executed in the 1970s and 80s, the odds are high that it would have proven that some of them were innocent as well.

Society takes many risks in which innocent lives can be lost. We build bridges, knowing that statistically some workers will be killed during construction; we take great precautions to reduce the number of unintended fatalities. But wrongful executions are a preventable risk. By substituting a sentence of life without parole, we meet society’s needs of punishment and protection without running the risk of an erroneous and irrevocable punishment.

There is no proof that any innocent person has actually been executed since increased safeguards and appeals were added to our death penalty system in the 1970s. Even if such executions have occurred, they are very rare. Imprisoning innocent people is also wrong, but we cannot empty the prisons because of that minimal risk. If improvements are needed in the system of representation, or in the use of scientific evidence such as DNA testing, then those reforms should be instituted. However, the need for reform is not a reason to abolish the death penalty.

Besides, many of the claims of innocence by those who have been released from death row are actually based on legal technicalities. Just because someone’s conviction is overturned years later and the prosecutor decides not to retry him, does not mean he is actually innocent.

If it can be shown that someone is innocent, surely a governor would grant clemency and spare the person. Hypothetical claims of innocence are usually just delaying tactics to put off the execution as long as possible. Given our thorough system of appeals through numerous state and federal courts, the execution of an innocent individual today is almost impossible. Even the theoretical execution of an innocent person can be justified because the death penalty saves lives by deterring other killings.

Gerald Kogan, Former Florida Supreme Court Chief Justice Excerpts from a speech given in Orlando, Florida, October 23, 1999 “[T]here is no question in my mind, and I can tell you this having seen the dynamics of our criminal justice system over the many years that I have been associated with it, [as] prosecutor, defense attorney, trial judge and Supreme Court Justice, that convinces me that we certainly have, in the past, executed those people who either didn’t fit the criteria for execution in the State of Florida or who, in fact, were, factually, not guilty of the crime for which they have been executed.

“And you can make these statements when you understand the dynamics of the criminal justice system, when you understand how the State makes deals with more culpable defendants in a capital case, offers them light sentences in exchange for their testimony against another participant or, in some cases, in fact, gives them immunity from prosecution so that they can secure their testimony; the use of jailhouse confessions, like people who say, ‘I was in the cell with so-and-so and they confessed to me,’ or using those particular confessions, the validity of which there has been great doubt. And yet, you see the uneven application of the death penalty where, in many instances, those that are the most culpable escape death and those that are the least culpable are victims of the death penalty. These things begin to weigh very heavily upon you. And under our system, this is the system we have. And that is, we are human beings administering an imperfect system.”

“And how about those people who are still sitting on death row today, who may be factually innocent but cannot prove their particular case very simply because there is no DNA evidence in their case that can be used to exonerate them? Of course, in most cases, you’re not going to have that kind of DNA evidence, so there is no way and there is no hope for them to be saved from what may be one of the biggest mistakes that our society can make.”

The entire speech by Justice Kogan is available here.

Paul G. Cassell Associate Professor of Law, University of Utah, College of Law, and former law clerk to Chief Justice Warren E. Burger. Statement before the Committee on the Judiciary, United States House of Representatives, Subcommittee on Civil and Constitutional Rights Concerning Claims of Innocence in Capital Cases (July 23, 1993)

“Given the fallibility of human judgments, the possibility exists that the use of capital punishment may result in the execution of an innocent person. The Senate Judiciary Committee has previously found this risk to be ‘minimal,’ a view shared by numerous scholars. As Justice Powell has noted commenting on the numerous state capital cases that have come before the Supreme Court, the ‘unprecedented safeguards’ already inherent in capital sentencing statutes ‘ensure a degree of care in the imposition of the sentence of death that can only be described as unique.’”

“Our present system of capital punishment limits the ultimate penalty to certain specifically-defined crimes and even then, permit the penalty of death only when the jury finds that the aggravating circumstances in the case outweigh all mitigating circumstances. The system further provides judicial review of capital cases. Finally, before capital sentences are carried out, the governor or other executive official will review the sentence to insure that it is a just one, a determination that undoubtedly considers the evidence of the condemned defendant’s guilt. Once all of those decisionmakers have agreed that a death sentence is appropriate, innocent lives would be lost from failure to impose the sentence.”

“Capital sentences, when carried out, save innocent lives by permanently incapacitating murderers. Some persons who commit capital homicide will slay other innocent persons if given the opportunity to do so. The death penalty is the most effective means of preventing such killers from repeating their crimes. The next most serious penalty, life imprisonment without possibility of parole, prevents murderers from committing some crimes but does not prevent them from murdering in prison.”

“The mistaken release of guilty murderers should be of far greater concern than the speculative and heretofore nonexistent risk of the mistaken execution of an innocent person.”

Full text can be found here.

Arbitrariness & Discrimination

The death penalty is applied unfairly and should not be used.

In practice, the death penalty does not single out the worst offenders. Rather, it selects an arbitrary group based on such irrational factors as the quality of the defense counsel, the county in which the crime was committed, or the race of the defendant or victim.

Almost all defendants facing the death penalty cannot afford their own attorney. Hence, they are dependent on the quality of the lawyers assigned by the state, many of whom lack experience in capital cases or are so underpaid that they fail to investigate the case properly. A poorly represented defendant is much more likely to be convicted and given a death sentence.

With respect to race, studies have repeatedly shown that a death sentence is far more likely where a white person is murdered than where a Black person is murdered. The death penalty is racially divisive because it appears to count white lives as more valuable than Black lives. Since the death penalty was reinstated in 1976, 296 Black defendants have been executed for the murder of a white victim, while only 31 white defendants have been executed for the murder of a Black victim. Such racial disparities have existed over the history of the death penalty and appear to be largely intractable.

It is arbitrary when someone in one county or state receives the death penalty, but someone who commits a comparable crime in another county or state is given a life sentence. Prosecutors have enormous discretion about when to seek the death penalty and when to settle for a plea bargain. Often those who can only afford a minimal defense are selected for the death penalty. Until race and other arbitrary factors, like economics and geography, can be eliminated as a determinant of who lives and who dies, the death penalty must not be used.

Discretion has always been an essential part of our system of justice. No one expects the prosecutor to pursue every possible offense or punishment, nor do we expect the same sentence to be imposed just because two crimes appear similar. Each crime is unique, both because the circumstances of each victim are different and because each defendant is different. The U.S. Supreme Court has held that a mandatory death penalty which applied to everyone convicted of first degree murder would be unconstitutional. Hence, we must give prosecutors and juries some discretion.

In fact, more white people are executed in this country than black people. And even if blacks are disproportionately represented on death row, proportionately blacks commit more murders than whites. Moreover, the Supreme Court has rejected the use of statistical studies which claim racial bias as the sole reason for overturning a death sentence.

Even if the death penalty punishes some while sparing others, it does not follow that everyone should be spared. The guilty should still be punished appropriately, even if some do escape proper punishment unfairly. The death penalty should apply to killers of black people as well as to killers of whites. High paid, skillful lawyers should not be able to get some defendants off on technicalities. The existence of some systemic problems is no reason to abandon the whole death penalty system.

Reverend Jesse L. Jackson, Sr. President and Chief Executive Officer, Rainbow/PUSH Coalition, Inc. Excerpt from “Legal Lynching: Racism, Injustice & the Death Penalty,” (Marlowe & Company, 1996)

“Who receives the death penalty has less to do with the violence of the crime than with the color of the criminal’s skin, or more often, the color of the victim’s skin. Murder — always tragic — seems to be a more heinous and despicable crime in some states than in others. Women who kill and who are killed are judged by different standards than are men who are murderers and victims.

The death penalty is essentially an arbitrary punishment. There are no objective rules or guidelines for when a prosecutor should seek the death penalty, when a jury should recommend it, and when a judge should give it. This lack of objective, measurable standards ensures that the application of the death penalty will be discriminatory against racial, gender, and ethnic groups.

The majority of Americans who support the death penalty believe, or wish to believe, that legitimate factors such as the violence and cruelty with which the crime was committed, a defendant’s culpability or history of violence, and the number of victims involved determine who is sentenced to life in prison and who receives the ultimate punishment. The numbers, however, tell a different story. They confirm the terrible truth that bias and discrimination warp our nation’s judicial system at the very time it matters most — in matters of life and death. The factors that determine who will live and who will die — race, sex, and geography — are the very same ones that blind justice was meant to ignore. This prejudicial distribution should be a moral outrage to every American.”

Justice Lewis Powell United States Supreme Court Justice excerpts from McCleskey v. Kemp, 481 U.S. 279 (1987) (footnotes and citations omitted)

(Mr. McCleskey, a black man, was convicted and sentenced to death in 1978 for killing a white police officer while robbing a store. Mr. McCleskey appealed his conviction and death sentence, claiming racial discrimination in the application of Georgia’s death penalty. He presented statistical analysis showing a pattern of sentencing disparities based primarily on the race of the victim. The analysis indicated that black defendants who killed white victims had the greatest likelihood of receiving the death penalty. Writing the majority opinion for the Supreme Court, Justice Powell held that statistical studies on race by themselves were an insufficient basis for overturning the death penalty.)

“[T]he claim that [t]his sentence rests on the irrelevant factor of race easily could be extended to apply to claims based on unexplained discrepancies that correlate to membership in other minority groups, and even to gender. Similarly, since [this] claim relates to the race of his victim, other claims could apply with equally logical force to statistical disparities that correlate with the race or sex of other actors in the criminal justice system, such as defense attorneys or judges. Also, there is no logical reason that such a claim need be limited to racial or sexual bias. If arbitrary and capricious punishment is the touchstone under the Eighth Amendment, such a claim could — at least in theory — be based upon any arbitrary variable, such as the defendant’s facial characteristics, or the physical attractiveness of the defendant or the victim, that some statistical study indicates may be influential in jury decision making. As these examples illustrate, there is no limiting principle to the type of challenge brought by McCleskey. The Constitution does not require that a State eliminate any demonstrable disparity that correlates with a potentially irrelevant factor in order to operate a criminal justice system that includes capital punishment. As we have stated specifically in the context of capital punishment, the Constitution does not ‘plac[e] totally unrealistic conditions on its use.’ (Gregg v. Georgia)”

The entire decision can be found here.

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Guide on Writing a Death Penalty Research Paper

Table of Contents

The death penalty is one of the most controversial topics. This topic raises a lot of questions in society and this fact makes it perfect for research. But, it can be a challenging task for students to create a good research paper on such a difficult topic. 

You may be confused about where to look for the information, what is the correct structure for the paper, and many other aspects. But don’t worry, we are ready to help you! In this guide, we will cover all aspects of writing a death penalty research paper . So, keep reading to learn how to craft a strong paper.

How to Start Working on a Research Paper on the Death Penalty

The work on the research paper always starts with an in-depth investigation of a chosen topic. Speaking of the death penalty research, you may have to go through tons of information before figuring out what you want to write about. It is an essential part of writing a strong death penalty research paper , so take enough time for it.

But you might be wondering where to look for credible information. And to ease your search, we compiled a list of the best sources to gather data about the death penalty.

• Death Penalty Information Center (DPIC). On the site of this organization, you will find a lot of information regarding capital punishment.
• The Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (UN Human Rights). This UN entity publishes various articles and reports concerning the question of the death penalty on its site.
• Articles and journals. There are a lot of death penalty research papers and other scholarly literature, that can be helpful. Just search a little in research databases and you will find a lot of credible information.

Choosing Topics for Research Papers Death Penalty

The death penalty is a wide topic, and to create a good research it is better to narrow down the topic to one specific aspect. Many students get stuck in this step, as choosing a narrow topic from the variety of available options can be difficult. But, the good news is this task will be much easier for you if you have conducted prior research.

The data you gathered during the prior research can help you to find a direction for your further investigation. All you need is to follow a few simple steps: 

• Look through the information you found and highlight several aspects that can be researched.
• Search a little for information on each of the chosen aspects to understand which one is most interesting for you.
• Write down a few questions related to the chosen aspect.
• Select a question that is current and engaging — it will be the final topic for your research.

For example, you can conduct research on the death penalty in a specific country. Or, investigate the death penalty in the context of race and religion. There are a lot of options, all you need to do is brainstorm your ideas and find the best one.

Outline for the Death Penalty Research Paper

After you choose your topic and gather enough data, you will have a better idea of what you need to present in your research paper. But, how to structure your paper correctly? It is an important question, as a good structure increases the readability of your work and guarantees a logical development of your points. 

And that’s why you need to create an outline before writing a research paper. An outline will map out the way you will present information, and help you to understand how to connect all parts and create a paragraph flow.

A death penalty research paper should have the same structure as any other research paper. Usually, there are several parts in the following order:

Introduction

• Main paragraphs
• References or Bibliography.

You can use these sections to create an outline. But, you should also take into account the guidelines provided by your professor, if any.

Take a look at each section and think about how you want to organize the information in them. Take some notes about what each section should include and in what order. A few words will be enough to get a better understanding of how to develop all your points throughout the paper.

How to Write a Death Penalty Research Paper

So, you researched your topic, created an outline, and now it’s time to write your paper. In this step, all you need to do is follow your outline and present your argumentation or evaluation of the chosen death penalty question. Sounds easy, but to create a great death penalty research paper , you need to know about some common requirements. Let’s learn more about them.

The introduction section helps you to catch the attention of the readers, provide them with some essential information, and give them a better idea of what issue you will discuss in your paper. This section usually includes 1-3 paragraphs, depending on the length of your paper. 

Here are the components of the death penalty research paper introduction:

• Attention grabber — a short and precise sentence to engage the audience.
• Background information — a few sentences to give your readers basic knowledge of the death penalty.
• The significance of research on capital punishment — explain why this topic needs to be addressed.
• Short literature review — a few sentences about previous research on the topic and existing points of view.
• Thesis statement — a sentence that conveys your position on the death penalty or a central idea of your research.
• An outline — a short explanation of what you want to cover in your paper.

The main body is the longest part of a death penalty research paper and the most important one. In this section, you need to describe your research and provide arguments and evidence that support your thesis statement. It is usually divided into several paragraphs to improve readability. To keep the logical flow, present the information in the next order:

• Methodology. Explain how you conducted research on the death penalty.
• Ideas, arguments, and evidence. Present each idea in a different paragraph.
• Final results. The logical solution from your research.

A good conclusion should wrap up everything you write in the main body paragraphs and reinforce your central message. To achieve this goal, you need to include the following components in your concluding paragraph:

• Reiterate your thesis statement.
• Summarize your argumentation, evaluation, or solutions (basically, the main points presented in the main body).
• Remind of the importance of researching the death penalty.

Useful Tips on Writing a Research Paper About Death Penalty

Crafting powerful academic papers requires good critical thinking, evaluation, and writing skills. All of these come with practice. But, you can greatly improve your paper just by following some simple yet effective tips.

There are some tricks and tips that professionals use when writing research papers. And they will definitely be helpful for you, especially for creating a paper on such a controversial topic as the death penalty. So, here are some recommendations from expert writers:

• Review some death penalty research papers before writing your own to find inspiration and understand how a good paper should be structured.
• Provide arguments based on official data and credible sources only to avoid bias.
• Use numerical statistics as evidence of your argumentation.
• When you cite other sources, make sure you use the correct citation style.
• Always proofread your work at least two times after you finish it.

Final Thoughts

We hope that our tips will help you to write a powerful death penalty research paper . Remember, that all you need is to choose a question that is interesting to you, conduct in-depth research, and follow our writing recommendations. And don’t be afraid to ask for professional writing help , if you need it!

How do you start a paper on the death penalty?

At the beginning of a death penalty research paper , you need to give the audience a better understanding of what capital punishment is, why it is important to research this topic, and what aspects you will cover in your paper. Provide some background information, a thesis statement, and an outline of your research.

How do you write a thesis statement for the death penalty?

To write a good thesis statement, you need to conduct in-depth research first and then decide what side you choose. State your personal position in a precise sentence to give the audience a clear idea of your point of view.

Is the death penalty a good research paper topic?

If you want to conduct research on a controversial and engaging topic, the death penalty is a good choice for you. There are a lot of aspects and questions you can choose as the main focus of your research. So, find a question regarding the death penalty that is interesting for you, and start your research.

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Home > Honors Theses, 1990-2015 > 1722

HIM 1990-2015

The death penalty debate: a critical examination of the moral justifications for capital punishment.

Whitley Mann , University of Central Florida

Capital punishment is a forceful moral issue that is frequently overlooked. This is possibly due to the reverence many have toward the rule of law or a passive acceptance of the status quo. In this thesis I will begin with a discussion of context to the topic of the death penalty in order to address potential biases. Then I examine not only the ethical merit of the death penalty but the foundational justifications for a system of criminal justice to show that the special relationship between the state and its citizens does not lend itself to or allow for the instantiation of the death penalty. I look first to several theories of punishment selecting the most viable theory in order to make the most plausible case in favor of the death penalty. From there I establish that there is some intuitive merit to the notion that the vicious deserve unhappiness and see how far that intuition might extend. In this section I examine the merits and demerits of Kantian retributivism in order to address the many intricate ethical and political issues involved in the death penalty debate. I’ve chosen the Kantian ethical framework because of the nuance with which many of the problems of retribution are solved. Kant insets the enlightenment principles into his moral framework and provides reasoned explanations for there insistence, as such his work provides a background from which I will work through details and resolve contradictions. I will then make an argument for the moral personhood of the state and sketch the special relationship it has to its citizens. Finally I will offer a system that incorporates the ideas developed in the previous sections and gives a practical answer to the death penalty debate. It is my ultimate argument that there is no absolute ban on the death penalty, possibly even some intuitive merit to the scheme, but ultimately many moral limitations on its implementation.

If this is your Honors thesis, and want to learn how to access it or for more information about readership statistics, contact us at [email protected]

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Coverston, Harry

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Arts and Humanities -- Dissertations, Academic; Dissertations, Academic -- Arts and Humanities

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Mann, Whitley, "The Death Penalty Debate: A Critical Examination of the Moral Justifications for Capital Punishment" (2015). HIM 1990-2015 . 1722. https://stars.library.ucf.edu/honorstheses1990-2015/1722

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Argumentative, Exploratory, or Rhetorical Analysis Essays on “Death Penalty”

6 July 2023

last updated

Learning institutions require students to present outstanding essays on specific topics. In particular, the topic “Death Penalty” is an example of such a theme that learners may encounter during the writing process. Also, students may opt to use this topic when writing argumentative, exploratory, and rhetorical analysis essays. Basically, the three essay types follow a unique format that enhances the need to communicate with readers effectively. Despite the difference in formats, authors should use outlines before writing their essays. In this case, the process helps to organize ideas in a logical manner that enhances the communication of the intended message. Then, other important activities that one should consider are proofreading a paper and following a sandwich rule when writing body paragraphs. In turn, these activities help one to improve the quality of writing an essay on “Death Penalty.” Hence, students need to learn how to write an argumentative essay on “Death Penalty” or basic principles of using exploratory or rhetorical analysis formats for such a paper with examples to follow.

General Guidelines of Writing an Essay on “Death Penalty” for Argumentative, Exploratory, and Rhetorical Analysis Formats

Students must complete different types of essays during their studies. Basically, some of the common types of scholarly papers include argumentative, exploratory, and rhetorical analysis essays, which rely on varying rules irrespective of their topics. In this case, one can write about the topic “Death Penalty” in different ways based on the essay’s type. Moreover, learners must understand the necessary rules, formats, and structures for each essay type to prepare a paper that meets the necessary academic standards. In turn, the topic “Death Penalty” requires one to give an evaluation of the existing facts and provide compelling arguments that allow target readers to develop a better understanding. Hence, authors should write argumentative, exploratory, and rhetorical analysis papers by following specific rules. 

How to Write a “Death Penalty” Essay in Argumentative, Exploratory, and Rhetorical Analysis Formats

An essay on the topic “Death Penalty” should appear different when it is written as argumentative, explanatory, or rhetorical analysis formats. Basically, each of these essay types has different expectations and grading standards that learners must observe at all times. In turn, failing to meet specific requirements may lead to low grades for essays on “Death Penalty”. Hence, specific factors that one should observe when preparing an academic paper on “Death Penalty” are:

1. How to Write an Argumentative Essay on “Death Penalty”

One should rely on extensive research when writing an argumentative essay on the topic “Death Penalty.” For instance, argumentative essays require students to give different perspectives on an issue. In this case, learners must rely on extensive research to understand their topics and present viable arguments. Also, this approach enables writers to make claims that support a thesis statement , counterarguments that oppose the central claim, and refutations. In turn, this strategy allows an argumentative essay on “Death Penalty” to meet the necessary criteria for convincing readers to accept a particular perspective. Then, quality argumentative papers must contain clear and logical transitions between body paragraphs. In particular, authors must ensure that an essay on “Death Penalty” contains a unique flow of ideas between the introduction, body, and conclusion. In turn, transitions act as words that ensure a logical progression of thoughts in a paragraph.

2. How to Write an Exploratory Essay on “Death Penalty”

An exploratory essay on “Death Penalty” allows writers to find out about a problem and develop preliminary conclusions on potential solutions. Basically, quality exploratory essays represent the author’s perspective of the writing and thinking process. In this case, an exploratory essay on “Death Penalty” describes “when,” “how,” and “why” a writer complete specific types of research. Besides, a persuasive paper should identify the problem and possible causes and solutions that readers may establish. In turn, prudent writers give a reflection of how credible sources analyzed helped them to develop different thoughts about a study problem. Also, suitable reflections may indicate how writers fell short of expectations that led to new research directions.

3. How to Write a Rhetorical Analysis Essay on “Death Penalty”

Rhetorical analysis papers on “Death Penalty” allow authors to show how a topic appeals to readers. In this case, a suitable paper must show how a topic appeals to logic, emotions, and credibility. Also, writers must present information that influences the reader’s thoughts. Then, learners must examine their topics in greater detail and prove their perspectives by using rhetorical devices . Besides, a rhetorical analysis essay on “Death Penalty” analyzes a specific source and examines its effectiveness in communicating the intended message.

Structure for Argumentative, Exploratory, and Rhetorical Analysis Essays on “Death Penalty”

Writers have to follow a specific essay structure when preparing an essay on “Death Penalty.” In this case, argumentative, explanatory, and rhetorical analysis formats follow different structures. Hence, an essay outline for these formats are:

Outline Sample Template for Writing an Argumentative Essay on “Death Penalty”

A student must follow a well-organized outline for writing an argumentative essay on “Death Penalty” to score higher grades.

I. Introduction

A. A catchphrase that makes the opening paragraph interesting. Basically, the first sentence must draw readers into an argumentative essay. B. A few sentences that provide background information of an argument being discussed. C. A thesis statement that presents the main claim for an essay.

II. Body Paragraphs

A. Background Paragraph

• This paragraph should lay the foundation for providing the intended argument.
• One should include a summary of the topic, definition of terms, and an explanation of leading theories.

B. Supporting Paragraph – This paragraph should support an argumentative thesis statement. One should include:

• A topic sentence that responds to a central claim made in the introduction paragraph.
• Evidence that supports this central claim. In practice, the evidence may contain reasons, examples, facts, statistics, and quotations. Also, writers should provide an in-text citation to support the evidence presented.
• Students must include an accurate explanation of the evidence. In particular, suitable explanations explain how the audience should read and interpret the evidence provided in the text. Besides, the opinion-based explanation provided should prove the writer’s point.
• This body paragraph should end with a concluding sentence that reasserts a topic sentence provided.

C. Opposing Paragraph – It is a counterargument paragraph that anticipates the reader’s opposition. Basically, authors should sound objective and reasonable when writing this paragraph. Hence, some of the elements that one should include are:

• A topic sentence should state a possible counterargument that readers might pose against a thesis statement.
• Writers need to include objective evidence to support counterarguments.
• Explanations should provide reasonable and justifiable explanations that may help to understand this counterargument.
• This body paragraph should end with a sentence that reasserts a counterargument.

D. Refutation Paragraph – This paragraph reveals the weakness of a counterargument. Hence, some of the factors that one should consider when refuting a counterargument are:

• A topic sentence states the weakness of a counterargument.
• The evidence presented should prove why this counterargument appears weak.
• Explanations should prove why a central argument holds when compared to a counterclaim.
• A concluding sentence reasserts the essay’s central argument.

III. Conclusion

The conclusion usually sums up the main points discussed in an argumentative essay on “Death Penalty.” Hence, some of the points that one should consider are:

• One should restate the paper’s overall claim and relevant supporting evidence.
• The conclusion should reflect a thoughtful and analytical understanding of a topic.
• The conclusion should not contain new evidence.

Important Points to Note

Students should not limit an argumentative essay on “Death Penalty” to five paragraphs only. For instance, a thesis statement should guide the length of an argumentative essay that one must write. In this case, a good essay on “Death Penalty” may have several supporting and counterargument paragraphs. Moreover, the primary goal is to provide an exhaustive explanation of the main topic. In some instances, one may combine the introduction and background information paragraph. Besides, writers may decide to combine a counterargument and a refutation into one paragraph.

Outline Sample Template for Writing an Exploratory Essay on “Death Penalty”

A. The introduction should set the context for readers to understand the main topic. In this case, students should begin writing an exploratory essay on “Death Penalty” with a paragraph that gives the general background information. Besides, one should set up the ideas discussed throughout a paper.

B. The introduction should reveal the importance of a topic under evaluation. Basically, the presented details should motivate the audience to read further. In this case, writers should ensure that the introduction creates unique interests in reading a paper.

C. The introduction of an exploratory essay on “Death Penalty” should state the question or topic of exploration. For instance, one should use one or several sentences that give more information about intended goals. In turn, readers should also find out “why” and “how” authors intend to explore it.

A. The body section should have different paragraphs that focus on supporting the central claim of an argument. 

B. Each paragraph should give a detailed explanation of a source used. In this case, writers should include the source’s information and explain why it sounds essential.

C. Each body paragraph should give the writer’s reflection on a source and its information. 

A. The conclusion should give a general overview of the concepts discussed.

B. Students should provide information that ties up loose ends. In this case, one should restate the main question and emphasize important points left out in body paragraphs.

Important Points

Learners should vary the body paragraph’s structure to enhance the communication of the main ideas. For instance, writers should intend to communicate the main message instead of following the structure discussed previously strictly.

Outline Sample Template for Writing a Rhetorical Analysis Essay on “Death Penalty”

A. Learners should identify an author of a source under analysis. For example, students should use a positive phrase to establish the author’s reliability and expert. Then, other essential details include the source’s title and a suitable rhetorical verb. Moreover, some of the unique verbs include “assert,” “argue,” “suggest,” “imply,” and “claim.” Finally, the first sentence should end with a “that” clause, which asserts its thesis statement. 

B. Writers should explain how an author develops or supports a thesis. Basically, this explanation should follow a chronological order to enhance the essay’s quality.

C. Students should include a statement that shows the author’s purpose, followed by an “in order” phrase.

D. Scholars should describe the apparent relationship that the source’s author establishes with targeted readers.

E. The last sentence in the introduction contains the writer’s central claim or thesis statement.

A. Topic sentence – The first sentence in a paragraph contains claims about strategies that address its purpose or prompt.

B. Specific examples and supporting idea – Students provide explicit textual support that supports their claims. Also, writers should discuss their examples thoroughly while providing supporting details. 

C. Discussion – Learners should discuss how provided examples support the central idea.

D. Concluding sentence – Students need to end each paragraph with a statement that sums up a single paragraph and connects an example to the introduction’s claim. 

A. Restating a thesis statement – Scholars must restate a thesis statement and dig deeper into the text’s overall intended meaning. Basically, this approach must help scholars to develop a deeper understanding than they establish in the opening paragraph.

B. Reflection – Learners should reflect on examples and main ideas discussed in the essay’s body. In turn, this aspect should state the meaning of the primary persuasive strategies utilized in the source analyzed.

C. Effectiveness – Writers should state if persuasive strategies used effectively communicated the intended message.

D. Closing thoughts – Students should include final remarks that show the primary purpose of a source under analysis.

Additional Points

Learners should ensure that rhetorical analysis papers show the source’s effectiveness in explaining the main argument. In this case, one should provide a seamless transition of ideas presented in a rhetorical analysis essay on “Death Penalty.” Also, topic sentences in second and subsequent body paragraphs should contain a transitioning statement. In turn, this method helps to communicate the intended message without creating avoidable obstructions to readers.

Strategies on How to Improve an Essay on “Death Penalty”

Students focus on achieving better grades in their studies. For instance, scholars must ensure that their argumentative, exploratory, or rhetorical analysis essays on “Death Penalty” meet the necessary quality and set requirements. However, many learners fail to achieve this objective due to various flaws. Therefore, some of the strategies that writers should use to improve the overall quality of their essays are:

Step 1: Proofreading

Learners must proofread their works to ensure that such papers meet the necessary quality. Basically, the primary purpose of proofreading an essay is to remove spelling mistakes, typos, and grammatical errors that may affect the essay’s readability levels. Then, prudent students request their peers to read through their works to provide suitable critiques. In turn, this strategy allows authors to identify all the writing mechanisms that may distort the intended meaning. Besides, writers should make the necessary corrections and revisions to ensure that their essays on “Death Penalty” meet the necessary quality.

Step 2: Use of Terminologies

Students should use specific terms effectively when writing argumentative, exploratory, and rhetorical analysis essays on the topic “Death Penalty.” In most cases, effective use of the necessary terms enhances one’s ability to communicate the intended message with clarity. Hence, some of the terms that one should consider when preparing an essay on “Death Penalty” are:

• Analyze – One should use this term when referring to the process of breaking an issue into fundamental parts using the supporting arguments. Also, this term applies when scholars refer to the evidence provided to support or oppose the main claim.
• Assess – The term “assess” refers to the process of evaluating the extent that something remains valid. In this case, one should persuade readers by providing relevant citations from reliable sources . Besides, suitable assessments must end with a clear statement that shows how one agrees or opposes the original claim.
• Clarify – Students should use the term “clarify” when making a concept clearer. For instance, the term “clarify” alludes to the process of explaining a complicated process, concept, theory, or connection between two variables or factors. In turn, failing to establish necessary explanations may lower one’s ability to communicate the intended message.
• Elaborate – The term “elaborate” refers to the process of providing more details or information.
• Evaluate – The term “evaluate” refers to the process of appraising a statement to establish the intended meaning. 

Step 3: Making an Outline Before Writing

Learners should create an outline before writing the actual essay. Unfortunately, many students make mistakes by writing their essays without planning or organizing ideas first. Basically, such mistakes lead to weaker essays on “Death Penalty” that fail to achieve a seamless flow of the main ideas. In this case, an outline helps authors to organize all the relevant ideas in chronological order. Then, prudent scholars must create an outline and make necessary revisions to ensure that they capture all the essential ideas. In turn, the process of revising an essay outline should involve the addition of more substantial evidence, removal of weaker sources, and inclusion of more explicit concepts that relate to the topic on “Death Penalty.”  

Step 4: Following a Sandwich Rule

All body paragraphs of argumentative, exploratory, or rhetorical analysis essays on “Death Penalty” must follow a sandwich rule. For example, one should provide a topic sentence, evidence, relevant explanation, and concluding sentences in each paragraph. Firstly, a topic sentence should connect to a thesis statement presented in the introduction. Then, students should use relevant and robust evidence to support topic sentences. In this case, some of the acceptable forms of evidence include examples, illustrations, and opinions. Besides, one should cite any evidence to enhance the essay’s credibility levels. After that, suitable explanations enable readers to develop a better understanding of connections between the topic sentences and supporting evidence. Finally, the last sentence in a paragraph should sum up all the ideas presented in the section.

Example of an Argumentative Essay on “Death Penalty”

I. introduction sample for an argumentative essay on “death penalty”.

The death penalty remains a contested topic among scholars in the twenty-first century. Basically, legal experts give moral justification that supports the existence of the death penalty. However, people who advocate for human rights maintain that the death penalty lacks moral justification. Although scholars disagree on the death penalty’s legality, the current justice system provides the necessary protocols to avoid the convicted criminals’ inexcusable execution.

II. Examples of Body Paragraphs in an Argumentative Essay on “Death Penalty”

A. argument.

The justice system of the United States provides the necessary protocols to ensure that the death penalty promotes justice. For example, the criminal justice system requires judges to sentence convicts found guilty of first-degree murder into a death sentence (Garrett & Kovarsky, 2018). In this case, the ruling in first-degree murder relies on objective evidence and a justifiable prosecution process. Besides, the convicted individual receives an opportunity to appeal. Hence, people charged with first-degree murder receive a death penalty after going through a fair legal process.

B. Counterargument

On the other hand, some people state that the death penalty does not meet moral justification. Basically, contenders maintain that executing a first-degree murderer fails to give him a chance to change (Brown, 2020). Also, the death penalty violates the convict’s fundamental right to life. However, such claims fail to consider that people charged for first-degree murder violated their fundamental rights. In turn, sentencing such people to death eliminates possible threats to public lives.

III. Conclusion Sample for an Argumentative Essay on “Death Penalty”

Though scholars disagree on the legality of the death penalty, criminal justice provides the convicts with a chance to receive a fair hearing. In this case, the current justice system provides the necessary protocols to avoid inexcusable execution. Thus, the counterargument presented fails to consider that first-degree murderers violate other people’s fundamental right to life. 

Defining Features

The second paragraph in the essay above contains the main claim. However, the third paragraph contains a counterargument and the necessary refutations. Finally, the conclusion sums up the main points presented in an argumentative essay on “Death Penalty.” In turn, this paper is only an example and does not force to consider any position.

Example of an Exploratory Essay on “Death Penalty”

I. introduction sample for an exploratory essay on “death penalty”.

Many scholars disagree on the most effective strategies that the criminal justice system should use to promote justice for first-degree murder victims. Different knowledge levels and personal interests influence such disagreements. Findings from recent research by Garrett and Kovarsky prove that creating awareness about capital punishment can reduce disagreements on the death penalty’s effectiveness.

II. Example of a Body Paragraph in an Exploratory Essay on “Death Penalty”

The book “The Death Penalty” shows that disagreements about the death penalty’s legality and effectiveness arise due to various ignorance levels. For example, non-lawyer fails to access legal documents about capital punishments (Garrett & Kovarsky, 2018). In turn, this problem leads to higher ignorance levels, where scholars with inadequate knowledge in legal matters oppose the death penalty’s effectiveness. Therefore, the government can deal with such challenges by creating awareness about capital punishment and its purpose in the twenty-first century.

III. Conclusion Sample for an Exploratory Essay on “Death Penalty”

Though many experts oppose the legality and effectiveness of the death penalty, ignorance in legal matters remains the primary cause. In this case, non-lawyer scholars tend to oppose the application of the death penalty in promoting justice. Thus, creating public awareness can lead to a sustainable solution to the problem.  

This example of writing an exploratory essay on “Death Penalty” consists of three paragraphs. However, the length of such a paper may be higher by considering the necessary points needed to be discussed in a paper. Hence, writers may use as many paragraphs as they need to explore their topics.

Example of a Rhetorical Analysis Essay on “Death Penalty”

I. introduction sample for a rhetorical analysis essay on “death penalty”.

The book “The Death Penalty,” authored by Garrett and Kovarsky, provides suitable explanations on the death penalty’s effectiveness to promote justice. In particular, the authors use logos and pathos appeals to provide suitable explanations. Because Garrett and Kovarsky present details that appeal to readers’ reasoning and emotional senses, they justify the legality of using the death penalty for first-degree murders. 

II. Example of a Body Paragraph in a Rhetorical Analysis Essay on “Death Penalty”

Garrett and Kovarsky rely on pathos and logos appeals to justify applying the United States’ death sentence. According to Garrett and Kovarsky (2018), criminal justice requires first-degree murders to receive a death penalty sentence for violating the victim’s right to life. Basically, this statement appeals to the reader’s emotions because it brings into context the rights of the people killed in cold blood. In turn, Garrett and Kovarsky (2018) maintain that people convicted with the death penalty receive an opportunity to make their appeals before execution. Moreover, such claims appeal to the reader’s logic because all criminals have a chance to express themselves and seek intervention when they feel that the court violated their rights. Hence, Garrett and Kovarsky rely on healthy emotional and logical appeals to justify using the death penalty.

III. Conclusion Sample for a Rhetorical Analysis Essay on “Death Penalty”

Though many thinkers disagree on the death penalty’s effectiveness, Garrett and Kovarsky use strong emotional and logical appeals to prove otherwise. In turn, these two authors present details that appeal to readers’ rational and emotional senses to justify the legitimacy of using the death penalty for first-degree murders. As a result, the strategy motivates people to change their attitude toward the topic.

The second paragraph shows the use of pathos and logos in the source identified. For instance, this body paragraph provides an accurate explanation of how two authors used rhetorical aspects to communicate the main idea. Besides, the section relies on sensible evidence. In turn, the number of body paragraphs can be more than one, and it depends on the writer’s needs.

Summing Up on Writing Argumentative, Exploratory, or Rhetorical Analysis Essays on “Death Penalty”

The topic “Death Penalty” obliges one to give an evaluation of the existing facts and provide convincing opinions that allow target readers to develop a better comprehension. In this case, one may opt to write argumentative, exploratory, and rhetorical analysis essays on the topic “Death Penalty.” However, each of these types of essays follows different guidelines. Hence, some of the points that one should remember are:

• Argumentative essays on “Death Penalty” must present viable claims, counterarguments, and relevant refutations.
• Exploratory essays on “Death Penalty” must identify an existing problem and propose a viable solution.
• Rhetorical analysis essays on “Death Penalty” must reveal the use of pathos, logos, and ethos.  

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March 19, 2024

Evidence Does Not Support the Use of the Death Penalty

Capital punishment must come to an end. It does not deter crime, is not humane and has no moral or medical basis

By The Editors

A death penalty vigil, held in 2021 outside an Indiana penitentiary.

Bryan Woolston/Reuters/Redux

It is long past time to abolish the death penalty in the U.S.

Capital punishment was halted in the U.S. in 1972 but reinstated in 1976, and since then, nearly 1,600 people have been executed. To whose gain? Study after study shows that the death penalty does not deter crime, puts innocent people to death , is racially biased , and is cruel and inhumane. It is state-sanctioned homicide, wholly ineffective, often botched, and a much more expensive punishment than life imprisonment. There is no ethical, scientifically supported, medically acceptable or morally justifiable way to carry it out.

The recent execution of Kenneth Eugene Smith demonstrates this barbarity. After a failed attempt at lethal injection by prison officials seemingly inexperienced in the placement of an IV, the state of Alabama killed Smith in January using nitrogen gas . The Alabama attorney general claimed that this method of execution was fast and humane , despite no supporting evidence. Eyewitnesses recounted that Smith thrashed during the nitrogen administration and took more than 20 minutes to die.

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Opposition to the death penalty is growing among the American public , and the Biden administration must follow through on its promise to end this horror. The Department of Justice must heed its own admission that the death penalty doesn’t stop crime, and our legislators must continue to take up the issue on the congressional floor. The few states that still condemn people to death must follow the lead of states that have considered the evidence and rejected capital punishment.

Programs such as the Innocence Project have shown, over and over, that innocent people have been sentenced to death. Since 1973 nearly 200 people on death row have been exonerated, based on appeals, the reopening of cases, and the entrance of new and sometimes previously suppressed evidence. People have recanted testimony, and supposedly airtight cases have been poked full of evidentiary holes.

Through the death penalty, the criminal justice system has killed at least 20 people now believed to have been innocent and uncounted others whose cases have not been reexamined . Too many of these victims have been Black or Hispanic. This is not justice. These are state-sanctioned hate crimes.

Using rigorous statistical and experimental control methods, both economics and criminal justice studies have consistently found that there is no evidence for deterrence of violent crimes in states that allow capital punishment. One such study, a 2009 paper by criminology researchers at the University of Dallas, outlines experimental and statistical flaws in econometrics-based death penalty studies that claim to find a correlated reduction in violent crime. The death penalty does not stop people from killing. Executions don’t make us safer.

The methods used to kill prisoners are inhumane. Electrocution fails , causing significant pain and suffering. Joel Zivot, an anesthesiologist who criticizes the use of medicines in carrying out the death penalty, has found (at the request of lawyers of death row inmates) that the lungs of prisoners who were killed by lethal injection were often heavy with fluid and froth that suggested they were struggling to breathe and felt like they were drowning. Nitrogen gas is used in some veterinary euthanasia, but based in part on the behavior of rats in its presence, it is “unacceptable” for mammals , according to the American Veterinary Medical Association. This means that Smith, as his lawyers claimed in efforts to stop his execution, became a human subject in an immoral experiment.

Courts have often decided, against the abundant evidence, that these killings are constitutional and do not fall under the “cruel and unusual punishment” clause of the 8th Amendment or, in Smith’s appeal , both the 8th Amendment and the due process protection clause of the 14th amendment.

A small number of prosecutors and judges in a few states, mostly in the South, are responsible for most of the death sentences being handed down in the U.S. today. It’s a power they should not be able to wield. Smith was sentenced to life in prison by a jury before the judge in his case overruled the jury and gave him the death sentence.

A furious urge for vengeance against those who have done wrong—or those we think have done wrong—is the biggest motivation for the death penalty. But this desire for violent retribution is the very impulse that our criminal justice system is made to check, not abet. Elected officials need to reform this aspect of our justice system at both the state and federal levels. Capital punishment does not stop crime and mocks both justice and humanity. The death penalty in the U.S. must come to an end.

This is an opinion and analysis article, and the views expressed by the author or authors are not necessarily those of Scientific American .

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