Should We Cap Capital Punishment?

Jacob Francy, '26

The death penalty, or capital punishment, has been used as a legal penalty ever since the start of the country. Even though in the 8th Amendment, “cruel and unusual” punishments are prohibited, the founding fathers made sure that death itself was allowed by sneaking that “deprivation of life” was an allowable punishment after a fair trial. Over 1,500 people have been executed in the United States, but did they deserve such punishment?

Anti-death penalty argues that putting others to death for being responsible for another death is an outdated idea like “an eye for an eye.” The five methods of performing are lethal injection, electrocution, lethal gas, hanging, and firing squad. Protestors believe these are inhumane ways of being executed. Many Americans are against the idea, because they believe prisoners would rather become deceased at that point rather than live a prison sentence the rest of their lives. “The real punishment would be to live in a cell until you’re six feet under,” one unfiltered death penalty protestor told CBS. The ACLU has supported the abolishment of the death penalty, as well for the human rights part. 190 people have been wrongly executed, and 156 were released before execution, all after 1973. A study found that a big factor in the decision to sentence someone to death row has been indeed the defendant’s race. 41% of the current U.S. death row population are black, plus 17% are Latino or other minorities. This could be due to racial profiling and the inability for the defendant to afford a high-quality lawyer.

If you believe capital punishment should stay an option as a penalty, you are in the majority. 60-65% of Americans support the death penalty in very specific situations. The main reason for this argument is that the supporters believe death is worse than life in prison. “If the crime is worse than any other punishment, the death penalty is a perfect choice,” a writer from prodeathpenalty.com stated. Pew Research Center found that white people between 50-64 years of age with a high school diploma at the most represented the biggest audience for support of the death penalty. Alternatively, African Americans between the ages of 18-29 years of age with a college degree minimum are the biggest average protestors of capital punishment.

Is the death penalty a necessary punishment for people who truly deserve to be killed, or is it an inhumane way of giving a consequence to people convicted of high crimes?