Capital Punishment: Right or Wrong? All punishment is based on the same simple truth: there must be a In order for there to be punishment, there mustbe both a wrongdoer and an authority to inflict the penalty. In a family,when you break a rule, the punishment is handed out by the parents. Insociety, punishment for crime is carried out by a criminal justice system(police, courts, and prisons). In both systems, one solid rule of thumbcan be derived: if you do something wrong, you will pay for it(Kronenwetter xi).Our topic, capital punishment, otherwise known as death, isconsidered to be the most severe penalty society can inflict. By doing so,it deprives the criminal of his or her futures, hopes and dreams, while atthe same time taking all that is precious away. Because the death penaltyis ultimate and final, it brings about much controversy. Some agree thatit is immoral, brutal, gruesome and primitive for a ruling body to usedeath as a punishment for deviance in any degree; no matter how harshthe crime. These people are known as abolitionists. On the other hand,the supporters of the death penalty say that it is only justice that thedeath penalty be carried out for capital crimes, such as murder, rape, andso on (Stewart 6-7).Putting all theology aside, these views can be explained, to thepoint of what fuels them. This can be accomplished by looking into thehard-core issues that revolve around this seemingly never ending debate,giving examples of real life cases, and analyzing scientific numbers. Eachand all of these steps can answer the following questions: (1) Is thereinequality in the courtroom?, (2) Does the death penalty deter crime?,and (3) What are the stands on morality and justice?Is there inequality in the courtroom?Most all of the societies and civilizations throughout time haveused the death penalty as a punishment for all kinds of social, criminal,and political wrongdoings. In ancient Greece, Egypt, and Sy...
