Some scholars and practitioners are totally against the use of the death penalty and advocate its immediate abolition, explaining this by the immorality and inexpediency of such punishment. Others support the death penalty, considering it not only as a legal restriction but also as the physical destruction of the offender, which guarantees complete society safety from such an act of this person. Others, in principle, support this measure, advocating a reduction in the use and subsequent abolition of the death penalty. All of these views are quite intelligently reasoned, and choosing the correct approach to the problem of the death penalty seems difficult.
Opponents of the death penalty believe life imprisonment is enough because it is essentially the same death sentence, but a life prisoner has nothing to fear and can commit all sorts of crimes in prison. In addition, the criminal can go free under the law. The law has amnesty, pardon, and parole (Wu). The main argument of opponents of the death penalty is the possibility of a miscarriage of justice which would result in the death of an innocent person (Barry). For opponents of this punishment method, the execution is as atrocious a crime as the perpetrator has committed. They believe that people should not stoop to the level of murderers. However, after all, life imprisonment also implies death. Therefore, the introduction of the death penalty will have to lead to a better method of investigating the crime.
People who are supporters of the death penalty believe that people who have committed such terrible crimes as murder will never recover. They believe that such criminals should not be given a chance to be reformed and should be executed. They believe that a life sentence for criminals is like a pardon. That may be the opinion of relatives of people who have suffered at the hands of criminals or the victims themselves (Morehouse). Either way, their prejudice against people capable of doing terrible things is unshakeable.
Personal Opinion
The death penalty is necessary to deal with the most violent crimes, such as terrorism, pedophilia, and serial murder. People capable of such things can no longer live their lives to the fullest; for them, it is like a stigma. If criminals have committed these acts in their right mind, the likelihood that they will be reformed is very slim. In order to impose the death penalty, a court must conduct a more thorough investigation to reduce the likelihood of irreparable mistakes. After all, life imprisonment can be challenged by releasing an innocent person, whereas, with the death penalty, this action cannot be committed.
Works Cited
Barry, Kevin M. “The Death Penalty and the Fundamental Right to Life.” BCL Rev. 60 (2019): 1545.
Morehouse, Lauren. “Confess or die: Why threatening a suspect with the death penalty should render confessions involuntary.” Am. Crim. L. Rev. 56 (2019): 531.
Wu, Sishi. “The effect of wrongful conviction rate on death penalty support: a research note.” Journal of Experimental Criminology 18.4 (2022): 871-884. Web.