NCJ Number
74212
Date Published
1979
Length
20 pages
Annotation
The abolition of the death penalty under the laws of Western Australia is urged through examination of arguments for and against capital punishment.
Abstract
Western Australia stands alone in Australia as the only State retaining the death penalty. Although death sentences have been commuted to prison sentences since 1963, this arrangement could be revoked at any time, and hangings would proceed. It seems reasonable to infer that if Western Australia has decided to stand firm against the abolitionist tide in Australia and the world in general, it must have a good reason for doing so. However, after a thorough review of the literature on the death penalty, it is apparent that there are few rational, convincing arguments in favor of capital punishment that withstand critical examination. Arguments for retention of the death penalty include the viewpoint that society has the right to demand a life for a life, that the death penalty promotes public respect for the law and for the sanctity of human life, that it is impossible to know when a convicted murder is rehabilitated and may safely return to the community, and that capital punishment deters offenders. In rebuttal, it is argued that is is not the State's right to determine when and why a human life may be ended, that death is not essential for the incapacitation of an offender and the protection of the community, that the intentional killing of a human being is an illogical way to promote the sanctity of human life, and that capital punishment is not a successful deterrent to capital crimes. It is concluded that Western Australia is lagging behind other States and much of the western world in bringing about social reform. Fifty-nine references are included in the paper. (Author abstract modified).