Death Penalty Capital punishment, or the death penalty, is a legal process whereby a person is put to death by the state as a punishment for a crime The first capital punishment that took place in the United States was in 1608.

Methods Lethal Injection: Execution by lethal injection is the most common method used to put condemned inmates to death today. It is achieved by the intravenous delivery of a deadly quantity of three different drugs Electrocution: This method of execution involves using a direct application of electric current to the inmate to cause brain death. Gas Chamber: When a condemned inmate is executed by lethal gas, the prisoner is restrained in a chair inside an air-tight chamber

Methods Hanging: The condemned prisoner is weighed prior to the execution. A specific amount of force must be applied to the neck in relation to the weight of the inmate. Death is by dislocation of the third or fourth cervical vertebrae. Firing Squad: Execution by a firing squad usually involves a team of five shooters, only some of whom use real bullets with others using blanks.

Arguments in Favor Services justice Avoid showing more sympathy for criminals than victims A just penalty for atrocities (e.g., the most vicious murders) Closure to the victim’s loved ones Ending the life of a prisoner who has killed people could be stopping further murders

Arguments Against There have been many innocent victims Discrimination against minorities and the poor Life in prison is a worse, more effective deterrent Doesn’t bring the victim(s) back to life Sends the wrong message (murder as an answer to murder) A violation of human rights

Families ( Criminal’s vs Victim’s) o Criminal’s Family The family members have to live with their family member dead. They have to suffer from pain and heartache because of their family members sentence to death. They loose a family member to the death penalty

Families ( Criminal’s vs Victim’s) Victim’s Family The victims family has to deal with the heartache and pain because of what the defendant did. The victim’s family loses a family member The victim’s family gets justice because the defendant is sentenced to death

Video Alan Keyes vs Barack Obama debate on Death Penalty

What do you think? Velma Barfield of North Carolina.  In 1974 she killed her own mother, Lillie, with insecticide so that she could fake her signature on a $1,000 loan.  She poisoned two of her employers and a lover over the next few years. It was found that they had been poisoned with arsenic.  Velma Barfield confessed to her crimes. In court, the jury deliberated for an hour and found her guilty of first degree murder. She was sentenced to be executed in  While Mrs. Barfield was on death row, she found God. She repented of her sins and gave her life to Christ.

Reflection “ Man must evolve for all human conflict a method which rejects reverenge, aggression and retaliation. The foundation of such a method is love.” Martin Luther King, Jr.