Death Penalty

Death Penalty

Introduction

The first ever Capital Punishment dates back to the eighteenth century B.C. in Babylon. There were twenty offenses to which the death penalty was given in Babylon. In ten A.D., hanging was the form of the death penalty in Britain. The common methods used during those times were boiling, burning, hanging and beheading. Even the offences like to marry a Jew, not to confess to a crime and treachery was also considered crime of capital nature (Phelps's., 2003).

Death penalty in United States

In colonial America, the death penalty was introduced by European settlers. The first ever execution was of Captain George Kendall in 1608. He was handed this punishment because of serving s an undercover agent for Spain. Later, Sir Thomas Dale the governor of Virginia in 1612 constituted minor offence like the killing of chickens as a death penalty offense. In 19th century, the abolition movement began in the United States and gained support in the north east region of the United States. Many countries consequently reduced the number of capital crimes by 1834 due to strong opposition

Many moved the executions from the public and carried them inside the jail. In 1846, the state of Michigan was the first to end the death penalty for all crimes. In 1888, there were new methods for execution, like the electric chair. Later, in other states electric chair became the primary method of execution. In 1960s, the legality of the death penalty was challenged in the courts. The amendments fifth, eighth and fourteenth did permit Capital punishment. But, in 1960s death penalty was considered a cruel means of punishment and was opposed in the courts. The issue of the death penalty gained so much momentum that Supreme Court voided forty death penalties in 1972. There were contradictions regarding the death penalty by the Justice who said that overall concept of taking life of another person was unconstitutional, but it was bound for revisions. The stature of the death penalty was re-written, and it was mandated for all who committed a crime of a capital offense. The Supreme Court once again ordered this as unconstitutional.

Discussion

Recent Developments in Death Penalty

Certain punishments on the federal level were also introduced, such as the murder of government personnel. Loss of life due to kidnapping and involvement of drug trafficking on a large scale and spying for other agencies.

In 1988, a new law was introduced for murder of a drug king pin. This law was enacted and the Supreme Court readily approved it. Since the law came into existence, six people were sentenced to death although no one is executed. In 1994, President Clinton signed another act in which the federal death penalty crimes were increases to sixty. In the 1980s, there were worldwide abolitions seen in death penalty cases. The American Convention on Human Rights, together with the United Nations aimed at the treaty on Civil and Political Rights to abolish the capital punishment on an International level. This was known as the Protocol ...