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I have this essay on capital punishment that i need proofread, any help is appreciated but whomever provides the most work (grammerical fixes, rewording to improve flow, etc) will get lifesaver. I know flow is a major issue i have with writing papers and that part will be appreciated the most.
An Essay in Capital Punishment
Death is the ultimate form of disobedience. It goes against human nature and no human should take another human’s life. Capital punishment, the death penalty, or execution is a legal process whereby a person is put to death by the state as a punishment for a crime. It is the belief of many that the ultimate disobedience needs to be countered by the ultimate punishment. The United States should utilize the capital punishment because it is deterrent capability. Life with no parole sentencing is an invalid alternative because why should someone who takes life deserve to live? Regardless of how bad the life is. The death penalty as practiced in the United States is in the public's interest, has been adjudged constitutional, is humane, and provides many opportunities to appeal, reducing the chance of inappropriate execution.
Capital punishment is a contentious social issue in the United States. While historically, a large majority of the American public has favored it in cases of murder, the extent of this support has varied over time. There has long been strong opposition from many sectors of the population, and As of 2012, sixteen states (as well as Washington, D.C.) have banned its use. While the level of public support today is lower than it was in the 1980s and 1990s (reaching an all-time high of 80% in 1994), it has been largely static over the past decade. A 2011 Gallup poll showed 61% of Americans favored it in cases of murder while 35% opposed it, the lowest level of support recorded by Gallup since 1972. When life in prison without parole is listed as a poll option, the public is more evenly divided; a 2010 Gallup poll found 49% preferring the death penalty and 46% favoring life without parole.
Capital punishment can be viewed as vengeance for murder. However, the death penalty is too extreme of a punishment for crimes such as rape, however wrong their activities might be, since they did not take human life. Political crimes should not be punished with death either for the same reason. However, when a person murders another person, death is the right kind of retribution. This is similar to penalties imposed used in a case of robbery or theft; the criminal often has to forfeit their possessions for taking someone else’s property. Similarly, it is fair that one who purposely takes the life of another person should suffer death.
A prime example of deterrence is the case of murderer and arsonist, Michael McCloskey and Anthony Yang, who broke out of a state prison two weeks after a four-time murderer escaped in 9/19/99, prompting the governor to order a 72-hour lockdown of all state prisons. The two escapees were apprehended at 6:45 p.m. Thursday, said Trooper John Scuch of the Wyoming barracks near Wilkes-Barre. More than 100 police officers had been combing the area for Yang, who is believed to have been the man who tried to steal money from an elderly woman at about 12:45 p.m. at a supermarket about five miles from the prison, state police said. After bystanders came to help, the man killed the woman and fled into the surrounding woods. The death penalty (as well as better security) would have prevented this woman’s murder.
Unfortunately there are some cases where the innocent are killed, for example. Wayne Felker, a convicted rapist, is claimed by some observers to have been an innocent victim of execution. Felker was a suspect in the disappearance of a Georgian woman in 1981 and was under police surveillance for two weeks prior to the woman's body being found. The autopsy was conducted by an unqualified technician, and the results were changed to show the death occurring before the surveillance had begun. After Felker's conviction, his lawyers presented testimony by forensics experts that the body could not have been dead more than three days when found. A stack of evidence was found hidden by the prosecution that hadn't been presented in court, including DNA evidence that might have exonerated Felker or cast doubt on his guilt. There was also a signed confession by another suspect in the paperwork, but despite all this, Felker was executed in 1996. In 2000, his case was reopened in an attempt to make him the first executed person in the US to have DNA testing used to prove his innocence after his execution.
Public opinion is firmly in favor of the death penalty despite some lingering misperceptions. In the U.S., surveys have long shown a majority in favor of capital punishment. An ABC News survey in July 2006 found 65 percent in favour of capital punishment, consistent with other polling since 2000. About half the American public says the death penalty is not imposed frequently enough and 60 percent believe it is applied fairly, according to a Gallup poll from May 2006. Yet surveys also show the public is more divided when asked to choose between the death penalty and life without parole, or when dealing with juvenile offenders. Roughly six in 10 tell Gallup they do not believe capital punishment deters murder and majorities believe at least one innocent person has been executed in the past five years.
Another reason to utilize the death penalty is to prevent criminals from escaping prison, preventing these nefarious inmates from causing further harm to society. In March 2001, Lee John Knoch and Aaron O'Hara, both 23 years old, escaped the Snake River Correctional Institution in Oregon. O'Hara, who was captured by authorities, is serving a six-year sentence for sodomy, sex abuse, and two counts of rape. Knoch was not caught and had been serving life with no parole for his 1998 conviction of five counts of aggravated murder and charges of assault, kidnapping, theft by extortion, and harassment. Knoch's escape could have been prevented had he been sentenced with the death penalty and placed on death row.
The death penalty’s alternate functionality is deterrence. In the August 30, 1990, The New American Magazine published an article called, "Murders That Could Have Been Averted By Capital Punishment":
"On December 7, 1984 Benny Lee Chaffin kidnapped, raped, and murdered a nine-year-old Springfield, Oregon girl. He had been convicted of murder once before in Texas, but not executed. Incredibly, the same jury that convicted him for killing the young girl refused to sentence him to death because two of the 12 jurors said they could not determine whether or not he would be a future threat to society!"
"In 1957, Richard Biegenwald murdered a store owner during a robbery in New Jersey. He was convicted, but not given a life sentence rather than death. After serving 17 years, he was paroled. He violated his parole, was returned to prison, but was again paroled in 1980, after which he shot and killed an 18 year old Asbury Park, New Jersey girl. He also killed three other 17 year old New Jersey girls and a 34 year old man."
To allow these murderers out of prison was an enormous mistake, costing many innocent people their lives.
In addition, capital punishment could deter future criminals. If felons know that conviction could result in execution, they will be less inclined commit homicides. As John McAdams (Marquette University, Political Science department) stated, "If we fail to execute murderers, and doing so would in fact have deterred other murders, we have allowed the killing of innocent victims."
The sentencing process for capital punishment cases is long and thorough. First the criminal must be arrested and indicted for the crime or the Pre Trial. Then found guilty during the Guilt Phase Trial. During the third step, the Penalty Phase, it is determined whether aggravating circumstances, mitigating circumstances, or victim are involved. Next the convict is sentenced. Crimes that are punishable by the death penalty are as follows: Capital murder, first-degree murder, capital felony with aggravating circumstances, and in some states capital sexual assault, treason, contract murder, train wrecking, capital drug trafficking, felony murder, aircraft hijacking, aggravated rape of a victim under age 12, and kidnapping with aggravating factors. After sentencing, the criminal has four opportunities to appeal: Direct Appeal, Post Conviction Review, Federal Habeas Corpus, and Clemency. Clemency is not uncommon: since 1976, 46 death row inmates have received clemency and were freed.
The last step in the death penalty process is execution. Forms of execution used today are lethal injection, electrocution, hanging, gas chamber, and firing squad. All forms of execution are proven to be quick and humane. Lethal injection consists of the inmate being rendered unconscious by anesthetics then using two drugs to stop breathing and the heart. The firing squad is only used in Idaho and Utah and involves five shooters armed with .30 caliber rifles and one shooter loaded with blanks (msu.edu). Methods of execution are designed to be as effective and painless as possible.
Although life with no parole sentencing is an alternative to the death penalty, it is not as effective in keeping the innocent populace safe and is much more expensive. Capital punishment should be an available in all states because it deters crime, incapacitates criminals, and is a humane sentence with many chances to appeal.