NCJ Number
109787
Date Published
1986
Length
8 pages
Annotation
Capital punishment in the United States is examined in terms of its history and current status and the major arguments for and against it.
Abstract
Execution was a common punishment in ancient times. By the late 18th century, however, a reform movement took place in Europe and started a debate that is still continuing. Canada, Australia, and most of Western Europe have abolished the death penalty. However, the penalty still exists in most of Eastern Europe and in Asia, most of Africa, and the Islamic nations. Capital punishment applied to 12 or more different crimes during America's colonial period, but laws and its use have gradually changed. As of 1986, 37 States have established death penalty laws that follow guidelines set in U.S. Supreme Court decisions starting with Furman v. Georgia in 1972. Michigan abolished capital punishment in 1846, although the State legislature has tried to reinstate the penalty many times since then. The main arguments in favor of capital punishment relate to deterrence, cost-effectiveness, the undesirability of paroling murderers, due process, the cruelty of life in prison, the need for retribution, and majority public opinion favoring capital punishment. Opponents argue that it does not deter crime, that it is random and capricious, that the innocent may be wrongfully convicted, that appeals and death row costs make it more expensive than life imprisonment, that parole is not a problem, that juries will be reluctant to convict in capital cases, and that the death penalty is morally wrong. Whether the death penalty serves justice is mainly a value judgment. Table, figure, and 8 references.