THE DEATH PENALTY Allowed or not allowed? Kamau Clanagan Period 7

What is It? The death penalty, also known as capital punishment, is the legal penalty of death as punishment for crimes. Some states execute by hanging, lethal injection, lethal gas, electric chair, and firing squad.

ALLOW IT I am for the death penalty. The death penalty should be allowed because it is beneficial to our society and to the murdered victims’ loved ones.

Reason # 1 It is a proper repayment to a heinous crime such as murder.

Example Antonio James was executed for slaying a seventy-year old man named Henry Silver. James was described as a cold blooded, repeated-murderer. Betty Lacoste, niece of Henry Silver “My uncle pleaded for his life…he got one appeal. It was denied”, expressed Betty.

Example (cont.) If the murderer gets only the life sentence, that will leave the murdered victims’ loved ones with the hate and fear of the killer being alive and that maybe someday the killer will come after them next. This would give the killer power over the loved ones and nobody wants that.

Reason # 2 The death penalty prevents more people committing murder crimes. Without the death penalty in the United States, the murder rates will increase by the hundred thousands.

Example # 1 From 1955 to 1965 there were 78,500 murders and 351 executions carried out. When it was waned between 1966 and 1976, there were 288,310 murders and only 6 executions carried out.

Example # 2 In states like: Pennsylvania Nebraska Tennessee Oregon Connecticut Wyoming There were only a range of one to fifteen executions since In other states like: Kansas South Dakota New Hampshire New Jersey There were no executions since 1976.

Reason # 3 The death penalty is neither inhumane nor immoral, but constitutional.

Example The people who are against the death penalty say that it is uncivilized, immoral, and inhumane, but the death penalty is already declared constitutional. The eighth amendment of the bill of rights, which is in the Constitution, says that the punishment must fit the crime.

Example (cont.) We would be going against the Constitution that is the foundation of this country and the framework for the organization of the United States Government which stops the President having tyrannical power.

Plan To Action We need to get together and figure out what states does not have the death penalty. Next we need to go to each state and fill out a petition to reinstate the death penalty. Then we need to go to each state governor and show him/her the petition. After we show it to the governors, and if he/she still says no, we will persuade he/she to reinstate the death penalty by words. If that doesn’t work then will do some other legal action like, a nonviolent protest.

Works Cited Big Mouth Productions, January 2006, Debate: The Death Penalty Sheet Facts On File: Issues & Conservatries, December 29, Greenfeld, Lawrence A., U.S. Bureau of Justice Bulletin on Capital Punishment, 1989 WiseTo Social Issues Digest The Gale Group, Inc., 2007,