Capital punishment (otherwise known as death penalty or execution) is the sentence of death upon a person by the state as a punishment for an offence.
Obviously crimes punishable by death must have a very high social harmfulness. They are known as capital crimes or capital offences.
It depends on the country, but most of them are: spying, betrayal, serial murder, murder with a special cruelty, rape, pedophilia, arson or revolt.
Prison is the place when we separate criminals and also a form of punishment for them. Furthermore, a prison is expected to rehabilitate the criminals. But what if they will not change they behavior, commit a crime again and get back to the jail? Whether it makes sense that the irreformable person should return and go out of the jail on and on?
Typically, the cost of imprisoning someone for life is much more expensive than executing the same person. Even if we compare to the cost of long court ‘death penalty cases’ it is truly cost effective.
Usually people who receive the death penalty are typically violent individuals. Therefore logic dictates that safety is a reason for capital punishment, because the criminal who waits for the death can be dangerous for guards, other prisoners and public order.
There is no scientific proof that nations with capital punishment have a lower rate of crime. But in fact, is it not that the spectrum of death penalty deters potential criminals?
There is no doubt that the most serious crimes should be punished by the heaviest penalty. The only question is: is it the death penalty?
What’s more, it is commonly believed that the punishment should match the crime. Therefore it is natural that the murder should be punished with death.
It is often believe that prison is a viable alternative to executing a person. In some cases imprisonment for life with no chance of parole is more proper than killing the criminal.
Killing a person is not humane, even if the crime is not humane. It violates basic human rights like right to life and natural death. The life of the criminal cannot compensate for the crime committed. Also it is believed that executing people is playing God.
How about wrongly convicted? Supposedly it may happen that the judge erred in sentencing for death. How to restore justice? Moreover it may seems that the death sentence receive a unjust double penalty, because people lose their lives with horrible pain.
Convicts have less time and likelihood to seek forgiveness for their crimes. Usually, they cannot sorry or repair any damage from the crime. Moreover what with convict’s family? It is said that relatives needlessly suffer too.
As we can plainly see, there are several good reasons to support and oppose capital punishment.
Recent polls show that the vast majority of Poles is for the death penalty.
The general population has a wide range of beliefs concerning capital punishment. Even these beliefs of the general population are subject to change.