One form of punishment that has been questioned for centuries is the death penalty. For centuries people have perceived the death penalty as a way to discourage crime, and safeguard society from evil. However, some people believe the death penalty encourages crime and wouldn't safeguard society at all.
In America, thirty seven out of the fifty states have enacted the death penalty.
In a paper presented before British Parliament in 1701, the author wrote about the death penalty. The author felt that people should show no mercy for the merciless. In 1812 a doctor wrote that severe penalties prevent crime. His angle was based on the theory that if people know they will be severely punished for unjustifiable acts, they will not commit unjustifiable acts.
Many others believe that the death penalty encourages crime. One theory people use to explain this position is the "just tired of living" theory. An example of this theory comes from James hitchhiker French, who insisted on the death penalty after he killed a motorist who gave him a ride. After French was refused the death penalty, he killed his cell-mate in a deliberate, premeditated slaying in order to get himself executed. French and others like him want to die, but are afraid to commit suicide so they use the death penalty as their way to commit suicide. Those opposed to the death penalty fee that if the death penalty wasn't in effect, there would be a killer would have no desire to kill others.
The majority of executions in the United States have been by electrocution. Lethal injection is a distant second.
The death penalty is a method of punishment that has bee around for centuries. Whether you believe the death penalty will discourage crime or incite crime, the death penalty will be a much discussed issue as long as there is serious crime in our own society.