Essay about Death Penalty

Submitted By Gaukhar2013
Words: 1979
Pages: 8
Open Document
Kazakhstan is a prosperous and one of the fast developing countries in the post soviet region. Besides achievements in economy, the government focuses on enhancing legal system.
There has been a surge of interest in the capital punishment. President of Kazakhstan, Nursultan Nazarbaev, imposed a moratorium on the death penalty in December of 2003 for all cases, apart from terrorism entailing loss of life and grave crimes committed in wartime, law abolishing death penalty. Moratorium is Latin word, which means temporary prohibition. So the death penalty is an existing type of punishment in the Criminal Code of Kazakhstan, but since 2003 it has been transiently banned. So, Kazakhstan has two options to reinstate or get rid of it.
Some people argue that life imprisonment is insufficient punishment for offenders, thus capital punishment is still being used. On the other hand, international organizations pay special attention on popularization of humanization.
Singh (2000, p.346), in the article “Capital punishment in the United States: a new abolitionism?”, called death penalty “the triumph of the punitive paradigm”, however he pointed out that 25% of world’s prison population are Americans. It provokes controversy regarding effectiveness of capital punishment.
This controversial issue demands decision, which will lead to improvements in criminal procedure of Kazakhstan.
In this study project I am going to discuss which one of these two options is suitable for Kazakhstan, as the basis for the rational and possible solution I am going to look at USA’s and the Netherlands’ experiences regarding that.
USA as example of endorsing death penalty
Attitudes regarding capital punishment are controversial in USA, however death penalty is currently used in 38 states of USA. Singh (2000, p.342) points out that USA remains the only ‘developed’ country which use capital punishment, even though world organizations, such as United Nations Human Rights Commission, are against death penalty and encourage countries all over the world to halt it. The questions are why Americans are wedded to death penalty and how American’s attitude has changed.
Singh (2000, p.343) emphasizes that the millions of Americans, who insist on death penalty, believe that “some crimes deserve death, nothing else will quench our righteous anger”, also, it is noticeable, that capital punishment serves as most effective sanction for justice, claims Singh (2003). So what are the strongest reasons for an application capital punishment, below I am going to reveal the most striking ones.
Plenty of researches were done, such of them were conducted by Jiang (2010) and Singh (2000). According to them, Americans’ attitudes regarding to death penalty are mainly affected by retribution and deterrence.
Retribution is reflection of the principle of lex talionis, or “an eye for an eye”, it means “if a person takes a life, then he or she must sacrifice his or her own life” (Jiang, 2010, p.861). A similar view is held by Bohm (2004, p.311). He describes retribution as “revenge right”, people have right to get revenge from offender. In addition for some people capital punishment seems as reliable way to reduce crime because there is no guarantee that offender would not repeat previous actions.
Deterrence in terms of death penalty is an approach to prevent individuals from committing crimes, it discourages others from doing similar offences, claims Jiang (2010, p.861). As well it is mentioned in the article of Singh (2000, p.342) that the effectiveness of capital punishment is demonstrated in decreasing amount in crimes. Singh (2000, p.344) emphasizes that even though some people focused on cruelty of death penalty, such type of punishment has been used effectively throughout mankind’s history. And as a proof it is still used, because of deterrent effect.
It is remarkable, according to Singh (2000, p.346) that religiosity of Americans’ society is in a favor of ultimate penalty,
Show More

Related Documents: Essay about Death Penalty

Death Penalty Essay

Death Penalty By Susan Doe April 15, 2013 Is the Death Penalty Just and Applied Fairly? The death penalty, also known as capital punishment, is the punishment of execution, administered to someone convicted of a capital crime; it is the most severe form of corporal punishment. The death penalty in the United States has been an ongoing debate throughout history. Capital punishment has been banned in many countries, except in the United States; there are thirty-three states that currently…

Words 2051 - Pages 9

Death Penalty Essay

What are the latest developments concerning the death penalty? In June 2008, the Supreme Court held that it was cruel and unusual punishment to use the death penalty against individuals convicted of raping a minor. In April 2008, the Supreme Court has held that lethal-injection procedures in Kentucky do not violate the Eighth Amendment's prohibition against cruel and unusual punishment. The action opens the way for an end to a de facto national moratorium on lethal injection executions that has…

Words 1352 - Pages 6

Death Penalty Essay

Is the Death Penalty Just and Applied Fairly? I. What is the death penalty? a. Capital Punishment b. Fifth Amendment II. History a. Babylonia B.C. b. First execution in the colonies c. First woman to be executed III. Pros a. Eye for an eye b. Closure c. Getting rid of evil d. Deter crime IV. Cons a. Discriminatory b. Risk of executing the innocent V. Statistics a. By year b. By state VI. Alternatives to the Death Penalty a. Life Sentence VII. Death Penalty here to stay…

Words 1276 - Pages 6

Death Penalty Essay

07/29/2013 The Pros and Cons of the Death Penalty in America The ’Death Penalty’ is a problem of much concern; many countries favor the ‘Death Penalty’ and apply that, while many other object strongly to this punishment. My opinion is that the death penalty should be banned as a form of punishment. What is Capital punishment? Capital punishment is the death penalty. It is used today and was used in ancient times to punish a variety of offences. The death penalty has no place in a civilized society…

Words 651 - Pages 3

Death Penalty Essay

Capital punishment is a prudent issue that creates a spectacle among those for and against the death penalty. From those that have lost loved ones from homicides to those that have committed murder and are then “lawfully”, according to the judicial systems, put to death. Although those for and against the death penalty may agree that there is a lawful and unlawful treatment of people, there is discern on who has the right to make the decision on who lives and who dies. Does man have the right to…

Words 1384 - Pages 6

Essay on death penalty

Death Penalty Lots of crimes happen throughout society but murder is the most harmful, not only to the victim but also to the victim’s family. The death penalty will bring justice to the victim and their family. Uma Kukaths said, “Death penalty supporters claimed that not only is the state justified in permanently removing a murderer from society, it is obliged to do so to protect its law-abiding citizens from harm”. The victim’s family would be happy to know that the murderer is gone and justice…

Words 902 - Pages 4

Essay on Death Penalty

the capital punishment. Capital punishment is a life or death situation. It is the execution of people who have been found guilty of certain offenses. Many people in today’s society believe that a death crime is so severe that they deserve a punishment equal to their crime. In some people’s mind they believe in killing the killer, but how does that show us that killing is morally okay? There are numerous proven reasons why the death penalty should be abolished. The best reasons are to not violate…

Words 910 - Pages 4

Death Penalty Essay

The topic about whether or not the death penalty should be abolished has been a very controversial one for years. Dating back to the first English colonies in the 1600’s, the death penalty, or capital punishment as it is formally referred to, is a part of American history that never began to be questioned until the American Revolution in 1776. To this day, many people have mixed opinions on the matter. Some people strongly believe that the death penalty should be instituted, while others strongly…

Words 642 - Pages 3

Death Penalty Essay

This is a dossier on the effectiveness and the racially implicated sanctions for the application of the Death Penalty. This paper is a general indictment of the entire criminal justice system, and the faults that exist within. This is not an attempt to sway your opinion, but instead to raise the awareness of those of us who hold the creed of this Great Nation dear and the potential that it holds. I think that in the terms of greatness there is a clause that as a people and a nation, we continue…

Words 1860 - Pages 8

death penalty Essay

Death Penalty Life and death; the two things that all birthed beings are guaranteed. Two concepts that are understood to be normal and unavoidable. Our mortality, though deeply mysterious and uncontrollable, is something that we have come to accept on a basic level. We all know that to live, means to die. That once we are born into life, our fate has been inevitably sealed to a single future. That though the means and the details may vary according to the individual, we will all certainly die.…

Words 1047 - Pages 5