The Death Penalty In William J. Tucker's Argume

Superior Essays
The death penalty has existed for centuries, it is a method used to punish criminals or those who do not abide to social rules. By committing a capital crime or capital offence, you can be sentenced to death (also known as capital punishment). This method of punishment was very common in different countries, including the U.S. However, throughout the years, this practice has decreased or was abolished by the government due to different interpretations of this system. In today’s society the death penalty is still a very controversial issue where many individuals have different perspectives about it. Besides one of the most common arguments of the ethics of the death penalty, is its competency on crime. Some individuals perceive death penalty as an ineffective method to halt crime, while others believe that the death penalty does influence the rate of crime which helps to decrease it. The author, William J. Tucker, emphasizes on this specific issue and argument about the effectiveness of the death penalty in his article “Why the Death Penalty Works”. In this source Tucker describes and analyzes the practice of the death penalty throughout the years that displays its power. Through his research, he discovered a …show more content…
Criminologists believe that there is no correlation between capital punishment and the rate of homicide. Instead they believe that “it is the result of population trends, specifically the number of “crime-prone” young men in the population” (413). In other words, criminologist believe that their is a pattern to criminality, depending on the population or generation the rate of criminality will either decrease or decrease. For instance if there is a high mass incarceration rate during a particular time it will, but if there is not then it will decrease or stay constant. Thus, the death penalty has no effect on the rate of crime or

Related Documents

  • Improved Essays

    The author’s point of this article was to give insight to the controversial view points on the death penalty, being in favor of those who deserve the capital punishment and opposed to those who do not deserve it, and argues that until the death penalty is not justified even without uncertainty to those that deserve it, and the moral deterrence is abolished from those that favor it, the argument against it will never…

    • 578 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Article Summary #1: Author William Tucker uses his 2000 American Spectator article to explain why the death penalty is actually a deterrent to criminals. Tucker analyzes the statistics of crime over the years and concludes that when death penalty rates are up, murder rates are down, and when execution rates decrease, the rate of homicides rises (par. 13). While many criminologists believe that the death penalty doesn’t affect the amount of murders that take place in America, Tucker counters by saying, “The results are plain to see. Beginning at almost the exact point when executions ended, murder soared to unprecedented heights.…

    • 693 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Great Essays

    The death penalty has caused tension between more than just those who enforce it and those who receive it. The shock waves caused by the death penalty can be found building tension within the conversations of those who may not have a true role in the process but who, in the eyes of the American democracy, have a voice on the matter. As an observer of the current and past status of the death penalty, one can form the opinion and understanding the necessity of capital punishment in the form of the death penalty. The death penalty has been apart of the court rulings since its reinstatement in 1988. Although those who are against the death penalty would argue that each one of these deaths were not necessary to the safety of our nation..…

    • 1818 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Adrianne Haslet-Davis writes such a vivid recognition of enforcing the death penalty by the use of deterrence. She focuses on an individual story, hers being coming close to death. She goes on and on about if any individuals was murdered the life of the murderer should be also. The community tends to always use punishments to put down criminals from their cruel and heinous actions. However, with our crime rates so high, it's plain up simple that the smartest punishment for any murderer should be execution.…

    • 804 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    In other words, the severity of the death penalty will make criminals want to avoid it. However, the statistics tell a different story. According to the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the rates of murder, one of the most common violent crimes in the U.S., are higher in states using capital punishment than the ones that aren’t (Deterrence). While the general trend of murder rates has been a downwards one, there’s still a significant percentage difference in the statistics (peak difference was 46% in 2005). This evidence shows that the idea that capital punishment is a deterrent is false.…

    • 1248 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Capital Punishment has been around for hundreds of years and was brought to America by the Europeans in the early 1600s; The first recorded death being back in 1608. Back in that time the Death Penalty was used in many cases from thievery to murder, making it the social norm during that time. Though in today’s society, capital punishment has been deemed by some as inhumane or morally wrong. In some ways it’s become a political issue in which a higher percentage of Republicans favor the death penalty more so than Democrats.…

    • 775 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The death penalty has been around for many years. It has been a controversial argument in the American society. According to the Webster Dictionary death penalty means the decision by a court of law that the punishment for someone’s crime will be death (Webster Dictionary). Over the years people have wondered many times what is the death penalty is, how this punishment works, and who qualify to receive such punishment. Many people are unaware of this social problem; it could be for many reasons.…

    • 453 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Texas Death Penalty

    • 343 Words
    • 2 Pages

    In this country, The Death Penalty is used to punish some of the worst criminals. The country decides to take their lives for the crimes they have committed, The Death Penalty, also known as Capital Punishment, has been used ever since 1750 B.C. Which means that thousands have died, brutally, for what the have done and yet some say Capital Punishment is known as Justice. However, there are many that believe The Death Penalty is in fact a method of punishment.…

    • 343 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Even though many countries abolished the death penalty from their law, there is still quite a few that still practices the act of killing a person convicted of a crime. People have numerous different opinions relating to the issue of the death penalty that is given to a convict. While some may think that the death penalty is necessary for those who have committed a terrible crime, there are others who consider it as an immoral act that goes against the values of humanity. According to the author William Wood, in his text “Capital Punishment/Death Penalty,” there are generally two arguments that suggest capital punishment is an effective way to save lives and deter numerous crimes. Also, it plays a major role in giving justice to victims.…

    • 1628 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Lloyd Turner Death Penalty

    • 2013 Words
    • 9 Pages

    The Death Penalty Throughout history, people have condoned capital punishment and believe it to be a proper punishment for certain crimes. However, like with anything, there has been increasing scrutiny behind the death penalty. Capital punishment is the legal and politically correct way to refer to the death penalty. The death penalty has been around for thousands of years and has been performed in many different ways. Throughout time, the laws and rules surrounding this form of punishment have been altered and changed, and in many places, it has even been abolished.…

    • 2013 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Capital Punishment and Ethical Theories. Many people in the United States have opposing views on Capital punishment, which is also known as the death penalty. The death penalty is the process in which, convicted criminals are executed by a governing authority. Many other countries have abolished capital punishment but the United States still allows for this to happen in certain states. The death penalty is used for most terrible crimes such as murder, treason, or espionage but mainly for murder.…

    • 1535 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Great Essays

    The death penalty is a capital punishment where criminals that have been convicted are put to death by the government (Issitt). The death penalty started over 400 years ago in America when George Kendall committed espionage and was sentenced to a hanging in 1608 (Issitt). This…

    • 1827 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Improved Essays

    If society has the highest interest in stopping murder it should use the strongest punishment to prevent murder. If murderers are sentenced to death and executed then potential murderers will think twice before committing capital crimes for fear of losing their own life. Criminologists…

    • 331 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Great Essays

    Death Penalty The death penalty or Capital punishment is a legal process whereby a person is put to death by the state as a punishment for a capital crime. However, since this punishment is established people are still wondering if the death penalty is a fair verdict. The first death penalty laws are established as far back as the Eighteenth Century B.C. in the Code of King Hammurabi of Babylon (in modern-day Iraq). The code implies that there are twenty-five crimes punishable by death in these times.…

    • 1630 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Argumentative Essay Against Capital Punishment Google defines Capital Punishment as “the legal authorized killing of someone as punishment for a crime.” It is argued that the death penalty is justice for those who commit crimes deserving of such extreme punishment. It is argued that the death penalty is a punishment set up so that the grieving families of the victims will feel a sense of accomplished justice. According to the Death penalty information center since 1976 there has been 1,438 executions. The death penalty should be abolished because it is a barbaric, immoral, and small-minded.…

    • 911 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays