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Avaree Davis

Professor Samuel Brown

Sociology 101

16 September 2024

A Flawed System: The Problems with Capital Punishment

“Fairness is an elusive concept in the context of capital punishment, as it often fails to

account for the possibility of wrongful convictions,” Franklin E. Zimring notes in his work on

the subject. Capital punishment is when we, the people, send someone convicted of murder to

court. In court, if the “murderer” is sentenced to death, it means they are receiving capital

punishment. This is one of the most debated topics of our time. I agree that all murderers are

monsters unless the murder was committed in self-defense. But this does not mean that it

warrants the murderers to have the same fate. Some people think that for the murderer to live life

in prison while the victim is dead is unfair. But as humans, we should not be able to decide the

fate of other people. This goes against many people's morals and values. I will now explain my

reasoning on why and how I think capital punishment is unjust, but a few answers are wrong

because of wrongful imprisonment, people should not be allowed to decide the fate of other

humans, and it does not deter crime.

To begin, here is a little background information on the death penalty. The first recorded

death sentence and execution by firing squad was carried out in the British colony of Jamestown,

Virginia in 1608 (Dwankowsi). However, this is not the first time people have been killed for

committing crimes. Just like Jesus, people were crucified on the cross just like how people are

executed today. The crucifixion of people on the cross was particularly terrible because it was

meant to be torturous and slow. More recently, the electric chair has been used in a few states.
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Electric chairs are used by sending electricity through the criminal’s head and legs. This first

shock is supposed to cause the person to go unconscious while the second damages organs and

causes death (Allot). Ted Bundy was sentenced to the electric chair after he was convicted. They

also execute the death penalty by lethal injection. This is a mixture of chemicals that they put

into the criminal's body to first put them to sleep and then shut down all of their organs.

Additionally, many people are falsely convicted each year. Since 1973, at least 187

people who had been wrongly convicted and sentenced to death in the U.S. have been exonerated

(Death Penalty Information). Exonerated in this case means that the murder conviction was

dropped after they were sentenced to death. The U.S. Government should not be allowed to

sentence anyone to death, especially if they are not one hundred percent positive that they are

guilty. That goes for any crime, for that matter. Unless the government has actual proof of the

person committing the crime, they should not be sent to jail. Countless years of someone's life

could be lost just because the court suspects that someone committed a crime. They cannot get

those years back. To miss countless big life events just because a court thought you were guilty

would be terrible. Being judged by people who do not know the prisoner personally and do not

know that they would not have done something like they were accused of must be a terrible

feeling.

Furthermore, no human should be able to judge another and sentence them to death. To

do this would be doing exactly what the prisoner is being accused of. Just because it goes

through the court system, doesn’t make killing and taking another's life any less moral. Instead of

sentencing someone to the death penalty, we could sentence someone to life without the chance

of parole at least with this they would still have a chance at finding forgiveness for their crimes

and they wouldn't be hurting anyone because they are behind bars. I will say Life-without-parole
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sentences are slowly replacing the death penalty throughout the United States. Almost 56,000

people nationwide are now serving sentences that will keep them locked up until their death

(Should Life Without). The convicted murderers being locked up solves the problem of the

public being scared to have them out on the streets and it punishes the convicted.

Ultimately, capital punishment does not deter crime. States that have death penalty laws

do not have lower crime rates or murder rates than states without such laws, and states that have

abolished capital punishment show no significant changes in either crime or murder rates (The

Death Penalty: Questions). If the death penalty does not even prevent murders, why is it even

prevalent? The United States’ only valid argument for having the death penalty has proven not to

be helpful to the people. The death penalty goes against many people’s morals, so the

government cannot say the people decided that someone needed to be sentenced to death.

Especially whenever juries are only made up of a few random citizens. Convicting someone for a

jury is putting blood on their hands. Christians are against capital punishment because it goes

against God to kill another person, and being for capital punishment would be to go against the

word of God. In the Bible, it states, “You shall not murder” (Exodus 20:13). It is not only

Christians' morals that execution goes against. 34% of atheists strongly believe that the death

penalty is wrong (Parrott). Those are people who do not have any moral obligation to a higher

power. So the thinking that the death penalty is wrong without already having a religious reason

for it like most is a big deal.

Another reason the death penalty should be completely abolished is because it goes

against the belief that every life is valuable. The thing is you can see thousands of politicians

saying that all life is valuable but when it comes to criminals they draw the line. We can see this

often When the prison system decides to take a life, it sends a message to everyone that some
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lives are worth less than others, especially if you have a criminal record. Pope Davis explains

that the death penalty "perpetuates a cycle of violence," this means it teaches society that killing

is an acceptable solution to problems because if the judge says it's alright to take a life because

someone was acting up then it must be okay. I believe we should be promoting forgiveness and

second chances,because all the death penalty does is encourage people to take revenge. By

choosing to eliminate the death penalty, we can work towards a more compassionate society that

values everyone's life, no matter what they have done..

Moreover, the death penalty often affects the parents of the inmates who are sentenced to

die. These parents feel a lot of sadness,shame,and pain because they have to watch their child

face such a scary situation without being able to help them. Gabrielle Banks talks about how

parents can feel "intense grief and emotional distress,"making it hard for them to talk to friends

and family because they don't know how to explain how they are feeling and no one else knows

what they are going through. Marie Gottschalk points out that these parents live in a "constant

state of anxiety," they are always worried about what will happen to their child. So, the death

penalty doesn’t just hurt the person on death row; it also causes a lot of pain for their parents and

families.

Think about it like this: if your child was either wrongfully convicted or rightfully so,

would you want to watch them be killed? Would you stand by and watch someone you raised and

cared for be murdered by the same system that says murder is bad? How could you look your

baby in the face, no matter how wrong they were, and let them be killed? I'm sure all of the

inmates' parents didn't think this would be their kid's future. If my kid was put on death row and I

knew there was nothing I could do to save them, I would end up in a mental institution or right

there beside them on death row because the guilt would eat me alive.
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The psychological impact of the death penalty on both those who are sentenced to it and

the victims as a whole is terrible. In her article, Gabrielle Banks discussed how the death penalty

creates a heavy emotional burden, stating that it causes "unbearable psychological torment" for

those awaiting execution. This suffering is not for the inmates, but it also affects their families

who endure the constant anxiety and uncertainty related to their loved ones' fate. Additionally,

Franklin E. Zimring notes in "The Contradictions of American Capital Punishment" that the

justice system’s reliance on capital punishment "perpetuates a cycle of fear and trauma" in

communities, as people live under the threat of such extreme punishment. This cycle of fear can

lead to increased anxiety and trauma among those involved, raising a lot of ethical questions

about a system that inflicts such mental and physical suffering in the name of justice. Making

the deep psychological consequences of the death penalty highlight the need for a better legal

system.

It's important to note that the death penalty is very dehumanizing for those who are

sentenced to it. When someone is put on death row, they are treated more like a number than a

person. Gabrielle Banks points out that this process can strip away their humanity, making them

feel "like they are not valued or cared for." Instead of being seen as individuals with feelings and

stories, they become just another case in the system. Franklin E. Zimring also emphasizes that

the way the justice system handles capital punishment "reduces people to their worst actions,"

which means society often forgets that they are human beings capable of change. This

dehumanization not only affects the inmates but also impacts how society views punishment and

justice, leading to a lack of compassion and understanding.

In conclusion, capital punishment is unjust and unfair because it takes the lives of people

as punishment but it also takes the well being of every family involved. We only get one life, so
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taking it from someone else is taking their story and the only thing that they have left after going

to prison. We should not be allowed to decide the fate of other humans. We know It does not

deter crime, doesn't change the outcome of the crime they committed , and it doesn't do anything

but put blood on the judge who signs off on it. Many people in America are wondering why the

death penalty is still around even though there are no valid reasons to have it other than people

thinking it somehow means getting even for the victim. While the eye-for-an-eye viewpoint is

easy to adopt, it is still a terrible way to look at the situation. America needs to realize that

capital punishment isn't the solution, if not for someone else's child. Think about what you would

do if it were yours.
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Bibliography

Banks, Gabrielle. “‘Justifiable Homicide’: When the Death Penalty Hits Home.”

Dissent (00123846), vol. 48, no. 3, July 2001, pp. 55–61. EBSCOhost,

research.ebsco.com/linkprocessor/plink?id=67357751-291a-36bd-9821-60eecbcc9fe7.

Kronenwetter, Michael. Capital Punishment : A Reference Handbook.

ABC-CLIO, 1993. EBSCOhost,

research.ebsco.com/linkprocessor/plink?id=8dafbb6a-97db-3c4a-a549-82d04075d043.

Franklin E. Zimring. The Contradictions of American Capital Punishment.

Oxford University Press, 2003. EBSCOhost,

research.ebsco.com/linkprocessor/plink?id=89563264-2c1f-32ec-8f58-842f74e15c9f.

Marie Gottschalk. The Prison and the Gallows : The Politics of Mass

Incarceration in America. Cambridge University Press, 2006. EBSCOhost,

research.ebsco.com/linkprocessor/plink?id=04646f00-8c1a-3a59-8458-7ffe4d84f88d.

Pope, Rushton Davis. “How They Get Away with Murder: The Intersection of

Capital Punishment, Prosecutor Misconduct, and Systemic Injustice.” Emory Law

Journal, vol. 72, no. 6, Sept. 2023, pp. 1531–80. EBSCOhost,

research.ebsco.com/linkprocessor/plink?id=ce106268-4c2c-31d1-bd3a-932df5a1a132.