1. Capital Punishment in the United States of America
By: Bryan Kolch

2. Information
The "death penalty" is the pre-meditated and planned taking of a human life by a government.
Since 1976, 245 death row inmates have been granted a pardon.
Humanitarian reasons include doubts about the defendant's guilt or the governor’s decision about the death penalty process.
The pardoning process vary by state and involve the governor, or a board of advisors or both.

3. Types of Death Penalty 5 types of executions Lethal Injection
Electrocution
Gas Chamber
Hanging
Firing Squad

4. Lethal Injection
The number of states authorizing lethal injection increased from 27 in 1994 to 37 in 2004.
Texas performed the first execution by lethal injection

5. Electrocution
Electric currents pass through your body until the heart stops.
There have been may botched executions through electrocution.
Many death row inmates have been shocked more than one time.

6. Gas Chamber
The gas chamber was formerly used in Colorado, Mississippi, Nevada, New Mexico, North Carolina, Oregon, Wyoming and California.
Today three states execute prisoners using the gas chamber Arizona, Maryland, and Missouri.

7. Hanging The prisoner dies by strangulation
The states of Washington and New Hampshire are the only 2 states that use the method of hanging

8. Firing Squad
Official protocol calls for inclusion of one or more blank cartridges randomly distributed among the live ammunition, giving each squad member a chance of not having killed.

9. Capital Crimes Spying Treason
Killing of another person in the 1st degree
Rape of a child under 13
Other serious crimes

10. Pros Gives closure to the victim's families who have suffered so much.
People will refrain from committing crimes out of fear.

11. Cons We are killing another human being
Who are we to decide if someone should die