James Etim
ENG I
Cindi Schneider

Inflicting Death

Many people believe that the death penalty is unconstitutional because there are many flaws in the court systems. However, there are also those who are for the death penalty, and believe that the ones who have murdered, raped, tortured, etc. deserve the same fate that they have dealt to their victims. Another valid point is that, many people disagree with the death penalty because they think it’s hypocritical causing the same fate for a murderer who’s killed a loved one. It does not teach the person who has committed the crime a valuable lesson for committing such a heinous act. The death penalty is simply an act of cruelty. Being against the death penalty, it’s assumed that the sentencing of someone to be executed, is very hypocritical. Knowing that the one who’s committed the heinous crime of murder and other crimes, has to spend the rest of their life behind bars, is much more beneficial rather than he or she just being killed without them realizing their wrongs and taking responsibility for their actions.
A controversial point that many who are against the death penalty argue is that in past court cases it has been proven that jurors have been racially biased. Therefore, red flags have been raised by the government and the people, and some do not believe that the trials in court have been a just way to determine who is to be executed. According to the Bureau of justice statistics The number of black citizens incarcerated vastly exceed

James Etim
ENG I
Cindi Schneider

that of any other race. With an estimated 4,347 black men being imprisoned for every
100,000 citizens and women at 260. The runner up to those numbers are latino/ hispanic citizens at 1,775 for men per 100,000 citizens and 133 for women. Despite the fact that African Americans only take up around 15% of the U.S. population, about 50% of those on death row are African American. Even though only three people in our generation have been subject to the death penalty, two of those were African
Americans, the next six scheduled executions are African Americans. In studies from the General Accounting Office, concluding that eighty­two percent of the studies that were reviewed, race was influenced on the sentencing of the defendant. Thus, an unfair sentencing is very plausible within the court system.
The cost of issuing a death penalty is also very expensive.From the time of the first court case, to the time of execution, including appeals and other delays, the cost for sentencing a criminal to receive the death penalty can be estimated as much as
$1,000,000 per case. Many people who realize how much it costs for a person to be executed, are usually against it. It is not only unethical to eliminate a person’s chance for reconciliation and redemption with the death penalty, but it is also unethical to use
American taxpayer dollars to exercise a practice that promotes a mentality of retribution that perpetuates gang violence in dangerous urban neighborhoods.
The death penalty is simply an act of cruelty. As humans, our emotions greatly impact this disturbing decision, whether the death penalty should be banned or not.
When someone dies, it is always at least a little painful no matter what. No one has ever come back to life to say that their death isn’t pain free. We cannot stop the fate that

James Etim
ENG I
Cindi Schneider

Mother Nature has in store for each of us, but we should never force death upon others.
No matter what they have done. If choosing to do so, it’s safe to say that we the law­abiding people who have embodied the justice system, are equally accountable for inflicting cruelty on others exactly like the criminals. With there being five different ways to receive an execution, including: lethal injection, hanging, gassing, firing squad, and electrocution, all except lethal injection causing extreme amounts of pain.