Death Penalty Is Not the Best Alternative

Death Penalty is Not the Best Alternative

"To take a life when a life has been lost is revenge, not justice." -Desmond Tutu. Death penalty is the sentence of execution for murder and some other capital crimes. To kill is to end a life; this can be done by accident. To murder however is more malicious in nature and is usually done as a result of some emotional response. There are a couple of reasons why some people are against this cruel penalty. First, there is always the possibility that the accused has been wrongly judge. Second, when it comes to social beliefs, we are also criminals if we kill the ones who have committed a crime such as murder. Third, the law will not save anyone. After death there is not a certain life. Also, it goes against the constitution. Finally, the cost of death sentence is too high. Death penalty is 2.5 times more expensive than keeping a criminal in prison for life. Death penalty does not solve anything and creates more homicides.

There have been many cases in which the accused is killed and years later are discovered that he/she was innocent. Or the opposite, they are sentenced to death but wait in a death row for many years. As for example we have Juan Roberto Melendez-Colon who was sentenced to death for a crime he did not committed and waited in the death row for 17 years, and eight months. Fortunately, he was absolved of charge and now lives to support the elimination of death penalty. According to the Bureau of Justice and official US statistics, there was an approximate of 3,230 intimates in death row in 2007. Such individuals wait on death row an approximate of 12 years. The question is how many of those are really criminals and how many are innocent and wrongly judged? The Bureau of Justice also says that executions have been fewer each year since 2000.

It is unlawful to kill others and is also against the bible for those who practice religion. In addition to that, it goes against the 8th amendment such says: Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual. Once an assassin does his crime and is sentenced to death, and is finally killed, he/she become a "victim". If we murder the assassins, we become one of them. As the bible says it, you shall not kill, we should not be attempting against anyone's life. There are always different ways to punish. Such punishments are and should be less cruel. Prisoners who kill people should work really hard in jail and their pay should be a bowl of cereal. They could also give something back to the community. They could build playgrounds, pick up litter, and shovel the sidewalks in the winter and things like that. Prisoners do not have to sit in their jail cell all day, doing nothing. All prisoners should have a job that benefits society.

According to an organization against death penalty, crime rates have not gone down. In fact, the murder rate in the US is 6 times that of Britain and 5 times that of Australia. Neither country has the Death Penalty. Texas has twice the murder rate of Wisconsin, a state that doesn't have the Death Penalty. Texas and Oklahoma have historically executed the most