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Why the Death Penalty Should be Opposed

The purpose of this paper is to discuss why the death penalty should be abolished as a means of punishment in the United States.

Death is not a pleasant subject, but it is a fact of life. We avoid discussing or dealing with death in all forms. We constantly hear of those dying without wills because they are unable to face the inevitability of their own death. We are this way because life is so precious and we take extreme measures to preserve it, lengthen it, and improve its quality as much as humanly and technologically possible. We speak of a murdered individual, especially if that victim was young or innocent, in the most extreme terms: wasted potential, hopes unrealized, affected lives destroyed. Our society has an inherent abhorrence toward the taking of human life, and the basic arguments of death penalty opponents stems from that feeling. How, we ask, can we justify society taking the life of an individual for any reason when what we are trying to end is killing itself?

It has been proposed by death penalty opponents that innocent people might be executed due to ôrailroadingö or false evidence, as well as the fact that overwhelming percentages of those convicted of the death penalty are persons of a minority demographic due to the fact that they are socially more likely to be involved in criminal events beyond their control as a direct result to their economic, social and educational status. ôThose who are guilty continue to be predominately poor, male, members of minority groups, now even those with mental disabilitiesö (Steffen 437).

ôAlthough no human institution can be completely free from error, this means that there must be very strict safeguards à provided by a comprehensive system of appealsö (ôLogical and Justö NP). ôSince 1993, 17 people who were convicted of murder and sentenced to death have either had their convictions thrown out on appeal or have been retried and acquitted,ö writes C...

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Why the Death Penalty Should be Opposed. (1969, December 31). In LotsofEssays.com. Retrieved 05:21, March 28, 2024, from https://www.lotsofessays.com/viewpaper/1712182.html