Death Penalty Essay

Do you agree or disagree with the death penalty? If you agree, why? If you disagree, what do you propose we do instead?

There has been much controversy over the topic of the death penalty. Should we have it? Should we not? No one can decide.

Currently, many people find the idea of capital punishment appalling. Many think it’s a miscarriage of justice. Some even say it “encourages a ‘culture of violence’ and violates human rights.” But what happens when the victim of such a heinous punishment is putting the public at large in danger? Do we put said criminal in prison for some time and when he’s done say “Okay. You’re free; just don’t torture any more people?” Do we put our trust in them only to find out that they never learned their lesson? What do we do when they come back to court for almost the same crime that they previously committed only a different person as the victim? This is where the death penalty comes in.

It’s not for ‘innocent people’, as some may claim are the victims. It’s for criminals who have committed a crime and have shown the signs of committing the same or a similar crime in the future. It’s for the criminal who puts the public in danger. It’s for the criminal who commits such a heinous crime, such as murder. While I will admit every individual is guaranteed what are known as man’s natural rights – Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness – we have a responsibility as the People of the United States to protect those rights, not just for ourselves, but for the other citizens surrounding us. That’s what our laws are for. When we break one of those laws, we infringe upon others rights, and in this case, we take away one of those natural rights. If the person committing such a crime were able to learn from prison time, I’d be fine with abolishing the death penalty. But our society isn’t always that way. There comes a time where we have to say enough is enough. Killing one person who would willingly kill many others is morally justified.

If that hasn’t persuaded you, let’s look at some other evidence. According to the Federal Bureau of Justice Statistics, the average cost of anesthetic for a death penalty is about $88.08. A Big Mac meal at McDonald’s costs $5.36. If we were to go based off of this price, the cost of food for one day would be approximately $16.08. For a week, that would be $112.56. Every week, it would cost around $25 to keep them living. But then you add on each additional week in a year, and the total grows exponentially. While there are more costs to capital punishment not accounted for in this situation, to keep them living would only cost each state more.

Morally, the death penalty is justified. It also costs less than Life without Parole. For these reasons, I approve of capital punishment.

This blog post is an official entry for the <a href="http://www.joshuapondlaw.com/scholarship">Law Blogger’s Scholarship</a>, sponsored by The Law Office of Joshua Pond, <a href="http://www.joshuapondlaw.com/">http://www.joshuapondlaw.com</a>.