Execute Capital Punishment

Original Post: Death Penalty by Pablo Bruno

In this original editorial, my colleague, Pablo, makes some very solid points regarding the death penalty as a punishment for capital offenses. He states that punishing someone to death is not doing justice, but is rather cruel and morally wrong. He goes on to affirm life-long incarceration as a better form of punishment. I agree with Pablo.

Murder is wrong. I believe this statement is something nearly all of us can agree on. However, in some cases it is considered "justified" and legal by the law. This is the capital punishment, otherwise known as the death penalty.  To me, the death penalty is counterproductive and hypocritical. It validates the very crime that is desired to be discouraged.

In 1972, there was a criminal case, Furman v. Georgia, in which the SCOTUS held, in a 5-4 decision, the death penalty to be in violation of the 8th and 14th amendments of the Constitution. This resulted in a suspension of capital punishment. Though in 1976, the death penalty was unfortunately reinstated. Since then, 1442 United States' citizens have been executed for the crime(s) they have committed. I also believe the death penalty to be unconstitutional. I understand it to be in violation of the 8th amendment, as the death penalty does fit the criteria as "cruel and unusual punishment."

Just for a second, imagine that you're confined to a solid brick room, 6'x8', twenty-three of the twenty-four hours, everyday for years. With nothing more to do but sit on your bed and stare at the wall. Now, take into account the fact that you're sitting on death row, awaiting your execution. You have your lawyer frantically running around, attempting to get your case reviewed once more before your long anticipated death in hopes of changing the outcome. This right here, is mentally exhausting and truthfully torturous.

This brings me to my next point, while subjecting someone who is guilty to the torture described above, imagine subjecting an innocent person to this type of treatment. There have been several accounts of wrongful execution. Take for example the execution of Claude Jones. Mr. Jones was executed in 2000 for the murder of a liquor store clerk in 1989. From the moment of his arrest to the moment of his death, Mr. Jones claimed he never entered the store and continually professed his innocence. "Proof" that he was the one who committed the murder relied on a strand of hair retrieved from the crime scene, which was said to be his. In 2007, the Innocence Project and the Texas Observer filed a lawsuit to obtain a strand of hair and run it through more modernized DNA testing. In 2010, the results were that the strand actually did not belong to Claude Jones. In conclusion, this is just another reason why the death penalty should not exist. It is unconstitutional and unjust in many ways.