Public safety debate

Public safety debate

Introduction

When crime became a key part of society, public safety became a matter of great concern. The civil rights of the defendant have been infringed in the name of bringing to book people and society, and it is not easy to keep the society safe. The civil rights of people are considered by some to be part of the bedrock of the country, which should be upheld at all costs. Therefore, the question to be asked here is to what extent people's rights should be allowed to be infringed, in order to keep the country and the borders safe.

The Patriot Act is viewed by many as a violation of the basic rights of the people, in the name of protecting the country from any further terrorist attacks, or the nefarious designs of the global terror networks. The message through this Act seems to be that the safety of the country is far more important than the protection of the civil rights of its people. This is exemplified by the signing of the new law of immigration by Arizona Governor Jan Brewer. Identification, prosecution and deportation of illegal immigrants are the main goals of the law. The major concern amongst the public regarding this law is the number of people the police or other law enforcement agencies would illegally search on the basis of suspicion, although it is meant to keep Americans safe. This paper will hence, shed light on the debate pitting public safety against civil rights.

Discussion

In this section of the paper, we shall look to address a few issues of debate, such as the death penalty, gun control, pursuit driving and hate crimes, which have sparked controversy and debate, with arguments on both sides.

Death penalty

The death penalty is also termed capital punishment, and is applied in specific cases of crimes, including murder and drug trafficking in the United States. The death penalty is a controversial social issue, although a large number of people have been in favor of it through the years. However, certain segments of society have been against the concept of capital punishment, and have called for its abolition. So far, seventeen states have abolished the use of death penalty, as of 2012 (cnew.cone.ca, 2012).

The main purpose of the death penalty is to deter potential criminals from carrying out their evil designs, and to serve a reminder to them that they could have to pay with their life if they did not stop from carrying out heinous crimes. Studies are very important to determine whether the death penalty has the deterring effect it is meant to have, and such studies have usually yielded disputed results.

According to a number of studies presented by economists, the death penalty has a deterring effect. However, according to Joanna Shepherd, an economist, an execution program which is half-hearted cannot help in achieving the goal of deterrence (New York Times, 2007).

However, critics of the death penalty argue that it is usually aimed at ...