Background
The death penalty, also known as capital punishment, involves the execution of a person following a crime for which he or she has been found guilty in his or her legal system. The history of the death penalty dates as far back as the Ancient Laws of China, but the first death sentence was historically recorded in 16th Century BC Egypt where a member of nobility accused of magic was ordered to take his own life. Over the years, the death penalty has taken numerous forms in different systems, including crucifixion, beheadings, drowning at sea, hangings, beatings, burial alive and impalement. Crimes meriting the death penalty have included cutting or grazing crops planted by a farmer, publication of insulting songs, perjury, making disturbances at night, willful murder of a freeman, or theft by a slave.
- Capital Punishment in U.S. History: This article examines the history of capital punishment in the United States and how it is has played a significant role in the country’s history.
- History of the Death Penalty: A look at the history of the death penalty in the United States and its changes over the years.
- Capital Punishment: An examination of the history of capital punishment, as well as the various positions taken on the issue.
- The Execution: History of the Death Penalty Worldwide: PBS examines the history of the death penalty, dating back to first documented execution.
- History of the Death Penalty: Comprehensive look at the death penalty in the U.S., including how religion, gender and innocence have played a role.
- Origins of Capital Punishment: A brief look at the history of capital punishment from its beginnings in Babylon to modern-day America.
Methods of Execution
In the United States, the modern-day death penalty is accomplished using a short list of methods that include hanging, lethal injection, electrocution, firing squad and gas chamber. Until the 1890s, hanging was seen as the primary method of execution in the U.S. The execution took place by having a trap-door open that forced the prisoner to fall through. By the late 19th century, some lawmakers sought a more humane method for execution, resulting in the first electric chair in 1888 in New York. Other states soon followed suit. The method involved strapping a shaved and blindfolded person to a chair with a metal skullcap then having them jolted with between 500 and 2,000 volts for about 30 seconds. By the late 1920s, the use of cyanide gas in a chamber was introduced in Nevada as a way to execute inmates. Today, five states authorize the gas chamber as a method of execution. Firing squad is also a method of execution that is still authorized today. With this method, the prisoner is strapped to a chair, hooded and shot in the chest. In 1977, Oklahoma was the first state to adopt lethal injection as a means of execution. It would be five years, however, the first person would die via this method. Currently lethal injection is the most widely accepted form of execution.
- Methods of Execution: A close look at the methods of execution used, state by state, including how many times each method has been used.
- Death Penalty—Lethal Injection: Examines the method of execution by lethal injection, including its history and controversies.
- Death by Hanging: Modern-day case of a person being sentenced to death by hanging.
- Arizona Moves Away from Gas Chamber Deaths: A tragic gas chamber execution pushes the state of Arizona toward lethal injection.
- Death by the Chair: The New York Times looks at the process of death by electrocution, step by step.
- Execution Methods: A look at the five methods of execution authorized in the United States.
The Cost of the Death Penalty
The cost of the death penalty, from the time a person is tried for a crime to his or her death is quite expensive. At the federal level, the average cost of defending a trial in a death case is approximately $620,932, which is said to be about eight times that of a federal murder case in which the death penalty isn’t sought. Some have estimated that the higher the cost of legal fees, the less likely he or she is to actually receive the death penalty. Those defendants with less than $320,000 in representation costs have a 44% chance of receiving the death sentence, as opposed to a 19% chance for those with more than $320,000 in representation costs.
- Costs of the Death Penalty: A look at the cost of the death penalty in various states around the country.
- Costs Test Backing for Death Penalty: Some question whether capital punishment is still worth the cost as huge sums continue to grow.
- The High Cost of the Death Penalty: An economic look at whether the death penalty constitutes a reasonable effort to prevent crime.
- Executive Summary of Federal Death Penalty: The United States Courts examines the cost of the federal death penalty.
- Death Penalty Puts Undue Stress on Justice System: The strain being placed on Colorado’s justice system from the cost of the death penalty.
- States Can’t Afford Death Penalty: Article explains that states waste millions each year on their capital punishment systems.
Criticism and Support of the Death Penalty
The question of whether or not the death penalty should remain has been hotly debated for decades. After many states questioned its constitutionality and even abolished its use, some reinstated it after being upheld as constitutional by the U.S. Supreme Court in 1976. However, some states have pulled back on the death penalty. Since 2007, it has been abolished in five states — Connecticut, Illinois, New Jersey, New Mexico and New York. And according to a study conducted by Gallup, public support of capital punishment was at just 61%, the lowest level in 39 years. In 2011, 13 states were said to have executed inmates, while in 2012 only nine states executed inmates, showing a decrease in reliance on this form of punishment. However, many philosophers argue that certain crimes should automatically result in that person losing his or her “right to life.” Some argue the death penalty will also deter others from committing similar crimes.
- Death Penalty Worldwide: A look at the status of the death penalty around the world.
- Toward Understanding the Death Penalty Debate: This article takes a look at why some believe the United States should abolish the death penalty.
- 10 Pros and Cons of the Death Penalty: Examines both the pros and cons of this hotly-debated topic.
- An Impassioned Debate: Numerous cases looking at the constitutionality of the death penalty.
- Does the Death Penalty Save Lives?: A look at whether the death penalty serves as a deterrent against future crimes.
- Debating the Moral, Legal and Political Issues: The Utah State Bar takes a well-rounded look at the issues prompting heated debates over capital punishment.
- The Death Penalty Debate: Resources that closely examine all aspects of the death penalty debate.
Famous Cases, Statistics and Further Reading
- U.S. Supreme Court Death Penalty Information Center: Resource providing facts, reports and press information about the death penalty.
- Capital Punishment Statistics: Death penalty statistics provided by the Bureau of Justice Statistics.
- Major Death Penalty Cases in the U.S. Supreme Court: Court decisions that have permitted and limited the death penalty in the United States.
- Which State Executes the Most People?: A state-by-state look at death penalty statistics.
- 9 Controversial Death Penalty Cases in the U.S.: Death penalty cases that have garnered significant media attention over the past few decades.
- Death Penalty Cases: Death penalty cases provided by the California Supreme Court.