“Anyone who takes another person’s life must be put to death” (Teen Life Application Study Bible, Lev. 24:17). Capital punishment in America can be traced back to the earliest civilizations. Many different methods of execution have been used as capital punishment; five common methods include hanging, electrocution, gas chamber, lethal injection, and firing squads. Hanging was the main method of capital punishment until the 1890s (“Descriptions of Execution Methods”). Hangings were started in Persia, which is currently Iran, approximately 2,500 years ago. Criminals were hung from a tree branch or from the back of a cart or horse up until the 1870s (“Lynchings and Hangings of America”). To prepare for the hanging, the criminal would be weighed
…show more content…
The criminal would urinate, drool, and vomit blood. Additionally, the criminal’s eyes would pop out of their head. Also, their flesh would swell and turn red. It is even possible for the criminal’s body to become so hot that it would catch on fire. Robert H. Kirschner stated, “The brain appears cooked in most cases” (“Descriptions of Execution Methods”). The third method of execution is death by gas chamber. Gee Jon was the first human to be put to death by lethal gas. Jon was executed on February 8, 1924 at the Nevada State Prison for the murder of Tom Quong Kee. Although other men were involved in Kee’s murder, Jon was identified as the gunman. Jon died within two minutes of inhaling the sodium cyanide gas (“Gee Jon”). To put the criminal to death, the executioner secured the criminal in a chair in a small, airtight chamber. After the chamber was shut tight so poisonous air cannot leak out, sodium cyanide was released. The criminal was then commanded to deeply inhale the gas (“Descriptions of Execution Methods”). After the criminal has been put to death, the executioners would place an exhaust fan in the chamber to eliminate the poisonous air. Lastly, they sprayed the criminal’s remains with ammonia to ensure none of the sodium cyanide would radiate off their body into the air (“Gas …show more content…
This method was used during the Holocaust. The majority of Jews were killed by the “Einsatzgruppen Firing Squads” (The Holocaust by Bullets”). Deaths by firing squads were extremely gruesome. For death by firing squad to take place, the criminal was strapped to a chair with bands across their waist and their head. A black hood was then placed over the criminal’s head. The executioners would lay sandbags around the criminal, so they would absorb the criminals lost blood. After the preparation was done, the executioners stood twenty feet away with .30 calibers and shot the criminal to death. The criminal would suffer from losing tremendous amounts of blood (“Firing Squad”). Many different methods of execution have been used as capital punishment; five common methods include hanging, electrocution, gas chamber, lethal injection, and firing squad. Fortunately, capital punishment was determined unconstitutional in 1972 (“Gregg v. Georgia”). Despite that fact capital punishment was outlawed in the eighth amendment, some states still use a few of these common execution methods (“Descriptions of Execution
The criminal would urinate, drool, and vomit blood. Additionally, the criminal’s eyes would pop out of their head. Also, their flesh would swell and turn red. It is even possible for the criminal’s body to become so hot that it would catch on fire. Robert H. Kirschner stated, “The brain appears cooked in most cases” (“Descriptions of Execution Methods”). The third method of execution is death by gas chamber. Gee Jon was the first human to be put to death by lethal gas. Jon was executed on February 8, 1924 at the Nevada State Prison for the murder of Tom Quong Kee. Although other men were involved in Kee’s murder, Jon was identified as the gunman. Jon died within two minutes of inhaling the sodium cyanide gas (“Gee Jon”). To put the criminal to death, the executioner secured the criminal in a chair in a small, airtight chamber. After the chamber was shut tight so poisonous air cannot leak out, sodium cyanide was released. The criminal was then commanded to deeply inhale the gas (“Descriptions of Execution Methods”). After the criminal has been put to death, the executioners would place an exhaust fan in the chamber to eliminate the poisonous air. Lastly, they sprayed the criminal’s remains with ammonia to ensure none of the sodium cyanide would radiate off their body into the air (“Gas …show more content…
This method was used during the Holocaust. The majority of Jews were killed by the “Einsatzgruppen Firing Squads” (The Holocaust by Bullets”). Deaths by firing squads were extremely gruesome. For death by firing squad to take place, the criminal was strapped to a chair with bands across their waist and their head. A black hood was then placed over the criminal’s head. The executioners would lay sandbags around the criminal, so they would absorb the criminals lost blood. After the preparation was done, the executioners stood twenty feet away with .30 calibers and shot the criminal to death. The criminal would suffer from losing tremendous amounts of blood (“Firing Squad”). Many different methods of execution have been used as capital punishment; five common methods include hanging, electrocution, gas chamber, lethal injection, and firing squad. Fortunately, capital punishment was determined unconstitutional in 1972 (“Gregg v. Georgia”). Despite that fact capital punishment was outlawed in the eighth amendment, some states still use a few of these common execution methods (“Descriptions of Execution