A Look at the Death Penalty In recent years, crime in America has been on the rise; in particular, violent crime. This has led not only to an overcrowding of prisons in our country, but also to an increase in the number of death sentences handed down by the courts. With the increasing number of death sentences issued, one would expect a decrease in the frequency of violent offenses. What then is the problem? Why is violent crime still on the rise? Despite the fact that the number of inmates on death row is climbing, the number of sentences actually carried out in any given year lags far behind. For example, between the years 1973 and 1992, four thousand seven hundred and four convicted murderers were sentenced to die, but only one hundred eighty-eight of them were executed (Stewart, 1994). That is but a mere four percent. In fact, the number one cause of death for inmates on death row is neither the electric chair nor lethal injection, but "natural causes (Kaplan, 1995). The reason for this disparity is the costly and lengthy appeals process to which every death row inmate is entitled. To remedy this situation, the death penalty should be used more often as a way of curbing violent crimes in America because it will prevent murderers and other criminals from striking again, discourage future crime, and help to promote and maintain a sense of justice and moral order. By examining the history, the methods, and the arguments surrounding capital punishment it is clear that the death penalty is an effective way to deter violent crime in America. Capital punishment, is defined as "the use of death as a legally sanctioned punishment" (Kronenwetter, 1993). Carried out in many different ways, the death penalty has been prescribed as a punishment for various crimes by nearly every society throughout history. Capital punishment is one of the oldest institutions in America. Americans have implemented capital punishment ever since Daniel Frank of V...
