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Death Penalty or Life in Prison

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Death Penalty or Life in Prison
Sierra Brattain
Southwestern Michigan College

Death Penalty or Life in Prison
Death Penalty I began my research by looking into the death penalty or also known as capital punishment. The death penalty is the action of executing a person who has committed an illegal act equivalent to death. Crimes punishable by death vary depending on the state; some include murder, sexual assault, treason, and other serious capital crimes (“Crimes Punishable”, 2011). There are many different outlooks on the death penalty; some in favor of the death penalty believe it is the ultimate balance between good and evil and they often use the phrase, “an eye, for an eye.” By using death as punishment they can assure society that the offender cannot commit another crime. Also that it can deter people from committing violent crimes, with the reasoning of, if someone believes they will lose their life over an action they will usually choose not to perform the act.
On contrast, those who oppose believe the death penalty is “a waste of life.” Many keep faith that everyone who may have committed a crime punishable by death can be rehabilitated, and could serve a purpose in society. Furthermore the death penalty takes the value away from life in society’s eyes, and causes it to seem unimportant. It is also strongly argued that the death penalty is unjustified because it can be dispensed upon the innocent. “Since 1900, 350 people have been wrongly convicted of homicide or capital rape.” Research also shows the cost to execute one person is close to three times the amount it would take to imprison someone for life expectancy (Andre & Velasquez, n.d.). Taking into consideration all sides of this controversial issue, my research has found that two-thirds of the U.S. population still supports the use of the death penalty (Newport, 2009). Evidence shows

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