Argumentative Essay On The Death Penalty

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The Death Penalty “It's just really tragic that after all the horrors of the last 1,000 years, we can't leave behind something as primitive as government sponsored execution.” (Russ Feingold) The death penalty, also known as capital punishment, is still used as a means of state punishment in many nations. However, due to its barbarity, ineffectiveness, and high fiscal costs, the capital punishment should not be practised in modern societies. Firstly, the death penalty violates human beings’ right to life. This is the most basic right that an individual has, according to the United Nations’ Universal Declaration of Rights made in 1948. Thus, no human being has the right to take another human being’s life. This position is also true of the state because people make up the state; therefore, the state has no moral right to take a person’s life. Consequently, governments who practise capital punishment violate the most basic right of its citizens. Secondly, the death penalty is barbaric. Such cruelty is suitable for modern, 21st century, societies. With today’s advances in knowledge and technology, a nation’s justice systems should not remain primitive. There is a plethora of evidence to prove that the methods of executing capital punishment are…show more content…
It is a fact that those less affluent persons, who can’t afford the best quality legal representation, are more likely to be sentenced to death. The rich are able to acquire the services of the best lawyers, investigators, and experts witnesses. Shrewd manoeuvrings by such elite legal teams can virtually assure that the client being represented will not be put to death. The converse also holds true. The OADP points to a Columbia University study which showed that the “main reasons” for reversing most death penalty cases (68%) on appeal, was “inadequate defense.” A system of capital punishment clearly puts the poor at a significant

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