Death Penalty In The 18th Century

The death penalty has been around as far back as the eighteenth century B.C. During colonial days, the death penalty was there in order to keep the religious command. There were a number of offenses a person could commit and receive the death penalty: Murder, Man stealing, bestiality, poisoning, witchcraft, etc. Each crime took its roots in religious sermons and biblical laws. Race played a large part of a sentencing for capital punishment before, during and after the Civil war. It was more likely that a person of color was going to be sentenced to death than a white offender. Those of color mainly due to the large prejudice faced this; their fellow peers did not represent them in court and most of the time justice sought out without the …show more content…
Constitution, ratified in 1791, the due process and equal protection clauses of the Fourteenth Amendment, and Model Sentencing and Corrections Act of 1978. Within the Eighth and Fourteenth Amendment, a prisoner has the right to the parole process and administrative appeals; they also are protected by the Constitution 's ban of cruel and unusual punishments and the unfair treatment based on race, sex, or religion. Cruel and unusual Punishment define itself as a punishment that is too severe to fit the crime of the offender as well as torture and abuse. Courts give federal prison officials full preference to control prisoner within their own prisons as long as it does not go against their constitutional guidelines The Competency evaluation is how a person can be or cannot be executed. The offender must be aware of him/her and have an understanding of why they are being executed and to what effect that will have upon them. Usually competency evaluation goes along with the mental stability of an offence and if they are mentally ill. In the event that a person is found incompetent treatment must be given and at a later date officials will assemble again on the …show more content…
One of the first arguments that come up is if the person is actually innocent, naturally, there have been innocent people that were executed and there likely will be more executed. It comes down to the skill and the will of the prosecution and defense lawyers and the hopes that the system will work for those innocent people and not against them. Next, the innocent family, friends of criminals, the accused, and what they have to deal with. It cannot be easy having a love one convicted and sentenced to capital punishment, the emotional toll this can put on a person can be overwhelming. Not only do they face personal troubles with this, there is also the social media coverage and abuse the media can produce unintentionally against them. Finally, the last argument is that there is no real humane way to euthanize a person. Every form of execution invented causes the prisoner suffering; some just cause less than others do. It could also be viewed as slow torture, knowing the day and counting the hours up until the execution date which could be considered an act against their