Equal Punishment And Proportional Retribution - 1443 Words

In this essay, I will argue that equal punishment and proportional retribution do not justify the use of the death penalty. First, I will argue that equal punishment is too specific and literal because it stems from the idea that one crime is deserving of that exact crime in the form of a legal punishment. In the case of murder, that belief would condone punishing murder with murder. We can’t justify some killings while condemning others. By giving permission to someone to execute another human being on the grounds of the death penalty, we are allowing him or her to kill another human being for killing. This creates a cycle of murder. Second, I will argue that proportional retribution does not leave the death penalty as the only option for punishment. However, it does give much room for interpretation and is not specific enough regarding alternative punishments. It would allow us to rank crimes according to severity and dole out punishments according to that scale. I will also bring up how retributive justice does not completely delve into the concept of who deserves to deliver the punishment to the murderer. Retributive justice is simply a means of attempting to legally inflict suffering upon another human being for their wrongful actions. Equal punishment turns society as well as those executing the punishment into barbarians. Murdering a person is not a crime that is deserving of being repaid with murder as a form of punishment. Killing someone for killing isShow MoreRelatedThe Theory Of The Criminal Justice System931 Words   |  4 Pages The notion that punishment should be equal to the crime is a major philosophy in the US criminal justice system. However, finding a great balance between justice and punishment is often a blurred line. Over the past 40 years, the population of state and federal prisons have risen drastically. Polices such as the war on drugs and get tough on crime have caused judges to give out more incarceration years than ever before. With such are large prison population, the resources needed to operate isRead MoreThe Retributive And Utilitarian Theory Of Punishment1478 Words   |  6 Pages Punishment is any kind of negative penalty inflicted on the wrong doer to prevent him from doing wrong in the future. Though there is no specific definition for punishment, it implies all those acts that are required to teach the wrong doer a lesson. Taking a negative step towards the offender. Since the evolution of time, there have been many sociologists who have given their theories on punishment and how the offender should be punished. The theories vary in terms of approach takenRead More Capital Punishment Essay1132 Words   |  5 PagesCapital Punishment Should we kill killers is the question to answer regarding the controversial subject of capital punishment. There is strong support for both sides and many people have offered their opinions in writing for all of us to examine. John M. Olin, the Professor of Jurisprudence and Public Policy at Fordham University, gave us his Pro-Capital Punishment opinion in the Harvard Law Review in 1986. Although his article was written more than a decade ago the argued topics have not changedRead MoreStrengths And Weaknesses Of Retributivism1969 Words   |  8 Pagesweaknesses of retributivism. Throughout history the term â€Å"retributivism† has had a diverse though correlated meanings. The most significant meaning of retributivism is righting or rebalancing the scale of justice, through the use of mechanisms such as punishment e.g. punishing criminals in order to achieve justice for the offence they have committed. Retributivism also looks back at the offence, since the offender has co mmitted a wrongful offence which needs to be punished. One of the core reasons why offendersRead MoreThe Death Penalty Is Justified1248 Words   |  5 PagesExecutions have occurred in many forms for thousands of years. From Roman crucifixion to American lethal injection, capital punishments have one common goal: to offer retribution to a guilty party. However, in recent years, the death penalty has come under intense scrutiny. There are a great number of people who believe it should be abolished entirely and some who believe it should be used only in the most humane ways. In this paper, I will argue that the death penalty is justifiable in casesRead MoreTed Bundy And The Death Penalty1538 Words   |  7 Pagesconsewuence. Nonetheless,and as unfortunate as it it, people like bundy exist today, some yet to be discovered. The death penalty is merely retribution, not at all revenge, as they are not nearly the same. Retribution is a punishment for doing something. 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He believes that if the American people were fully informed then they would consider it morally unacceptable. He believes that the death penalty is unnecessary to accomplish any purpose of deterrence or to gain just retribution. Marshall also states that, rather than the death penalty; life in prison would carry out its purpose. I strongly disagree with that statement because the life imprisonment law has been around for centuries and I still hear about murders on a dailyRead MoreThe Death Penalty And The Rise Rate Of The Violent Crime1029 Words   |  5 PagesThus it is challenging, if not impossible, to determine the exact role of the capital punishment in a prevention of potential future crimes. From the financial perspective, the deterrence argument for the death penalty seems cost ineffective and inefficient. Given the small number of death row inmates, which is 2905 as of July 2016, based on the most recent data available, the cost of maintaining capital punishment seems to be prohibitory high (Death Row Inmates, 2016). Not every one of those 2905Read MoreThe Death Penalty Preserves Human Dignity Essay2200 Words   |  9 Pagesmillion dollar question is should capital punishment be allowed? Americans have been blindsided with decisions about the death penalty; in the past many have agreed with the punishment due to lack of knowledge on the issue. Today, information on capital punishment is everywhere. I agreed with most of America on the issue; it should be allowed because of its many beneficial reasons. I believe in â€Å"just desert,† that is criminals should receive the same punishment that they us ed against their victims. If