Cons of the Death Penalty

Quote A1 "We will someday look back at the death penalty like we look back at slavery, asking, "How did we think that was okay?" (Claiborne 1).

Source A Claiborne, Shane. "Pulling the Plug on the Death Penalty." Sojourners Magazine. 01 Nov. 2016 eLibrary. Web. 24 Feb. 2017.

Paraphrase B1 The death penalty and executions cost about four times more than life in prison. Executions cost about $2 million compared to $500,000 for a prisoner there for life ("Reasons to Be Against the Death Penalty").

Source B "Reasons to Be Against the Death Penalty." Reasons to Be Against the Death Penalty. N.p., 20 July 2011. Web. 28 Feb. 2017.

Quote B6 Albert Camus once said, "Capital punishment is the most premeditated of murders" ("Reasons to be Against the Death Penalty").

Source B "Reasons to Be Against the Death Penalty." Reasons to Be Against the Death Penalty. N.p., 20 July 2011. Web. 28 Feb. 2017

Quote B7 "The reality is that capital punishment in America is a lottery. It is a punishment that is shaped by the constraints of poverty, race, geography and local politics," said Bryan Stevenson ("Reasons to Be Against the Death Penalty").

Source B "Reasons to Be Against the Death Penalty." Reasons to Be Against the Death Penalty. N.p., 20 July 2011. Web. 28 Feb. 2017

Quote B7 An Iowa State Supreme Court Justice said, "Crime indicates a diseased mind in the same manner that sickness and pain do a diseased body. And as in the one case we provide hospitals for the treatment of severe and contagious diseases, so in the other, prisons and asylums should be provided for similar reasons" ("Reasons to be Against the Death Penalty").

Source B "Reasons to Be Against the Death Penalty." Reasons to Be Against the Death Penalty. N.p., 20 July 2011. Web. 28 Feb. 2017

Quote B8 "The most glaring weakness is that no matter how efficient and fair the DP may seem in theory, in actual practice it is primarily inflicted upon the weak, the poor, the ignorant and minorities," said Pat Brown, former CA governor ("Reasons to be Against the Death Penalty").

Source B "Reasons to Be Against the Death Penalty." Reasons to Be Against the Death Penalty. N.p., 20 July 2011. Web. 28 Feb. 2017

Summary B2 Using the death penalty as a sentence for a crime has been discontinued in most civilized societies, mostly because it is against many religions and there is no going back once you have killed someone innocent. It is also not a deterrent for crime, as crime rates have not gone down at the fear of the sentence. The death sentence also promotes killing as an acceptable solution for a complicated situation ("Reasons to Be Against the Death Penalty").

Source B "Reasons to Be Against the Death Penalty." Reasons to Be Against the Death Penalty. N.p., 20 July 2011. Web. 28 Feb. 2017

Quote B3 Desmond Tutu once said, "To take a life when a life has been lost is revenge, not justice" ("Reasons to Be Against the Death Penalty).

Source B "Reasons to Be Against the Death Penalty." Reasons to Be Against the Death Penalty. N.p., 20 July 2011. Web. 28 Feb. 2017

Quote B4 George Ryan said, "In the US the overwhelming majority of those executed are psychotic, alcoholic, drug addicted or mentally unstable. They frequently are raised in an impoverished and abusive environment. Seldom are people with money or prestige convicted of capital offenses, even more seldom are they executed" ("Reasons to Be Against the Death Penalty").

Source B "Reasons to Be Against the Death Penalty." Reasons to Be Against the Death Penalty. N.p., 20 July 2011. Web. 28 Feb. 2017

Quote B5 Former Illinois governor, George Ryan, once said, "[I am] haunted by the demon of error - error in determining guilt and error in determining who among the guilty deserves to die" ("Reasons to Be Against the Death Penalty").

Source B "Reasons to Be Against the Death Penalty." Reasons to Be Against the Death Penalty. N.p., 20 July 2011. Web. 28 Feb. 2017

Quote C1 "With the death penalty, once a person is executed, there is no way to correct a wrong sentence. This is a gross violation of the human rights of persons created in the image of God." (Stassen 43).

Source C Stassen, Glen, and John Goodwin. "The Death Penalty is Losing." Tikkun. 01 Jul. 2008: 43. eLibrary. Web. 24 Feb. 2017.

Paraphrase D1 A frequent cause in people receiving the death sentence is because of the lack of good defense. People who are not wealthy enough to get a good lawyer to defend them are proven to receive the death penalty more often (Oregonians for Alternatives to the Death Penalty).

Source D "The Facts: 13 Reasons to Oppose the Death Penalty." The Facts: 13 Reasons to Oppose the Death Penalty | Oregonians for Alternatives to the Death Penalty. OADP, 2016. Web. 28 Feb. 2017. <http://oadp.org/facts/13-reasons>.

Paraphrase D3 No citizen of the United States' job should have to murder as part of their job. Many correctional personnel, like former military soldiers, frequently suffer from PTSD because they've had to kill. There is a good reason to have a military to protect our country from other countries attacking us, but prisoners that are locked up in high security facilities are not a huge threat to society. There is no reason to drive our citizens to the verge of insanity just for murdering someone who has done wrong because it's "what they deserve" ("The Facts: 13 Reasons to Oppose the Death Penalty").

Source D "The Facts: 13 Reasons to Oppose the Death Penalty." The Facts: 13 Reasons to Oppose the Death Penalty | Oregonians for Alternatives to the Death Penalty. OADP, 2016. Web. 28 Feb. 2017. <http://oadp.org/facts/13-reasons>.

Summary D2 Life without parole is a much better alternative than the death penalty. It puts innocent lives at risk, because what if your criminal ends up proven innocent, but he has already been executed for a crime he did not commit? Race and place in society are also big factors that contribute to the decision of the death penalty being given. We pay millions more for executions than we pay to imprison someone for life. Also, the capital punishment of death has not brought down crime rates, proving that it does not deter criminals. Families of murder victims can be helped in other ways. Capital punishment is also against almost every religion that exists. Many mentally ill people are executed, even though they cannot take full responsibility for their actions ("The Facts: 13 Reasons to Oppose the Death Penalty").

Source D "The Facts: 13 Reasons to Oppose the Death Penalty." The Facts: 13 Reasons to Oppose the Death Penalty | Oregonians for Alternatives to the Death Penalty. OADP, 2016. Web. 28 Feb. 2017. <http://oadp.org/facts/13-reasons>.

Paraphrase E2 When a criminal is sentenced to death, he as well as him whole family suffers. The family goes through many lows and hard times for a crime they did not commit. The media judging the family and the shame brought upon the last name is a lot, but on top of that, the government has just murdered their beloved family member. There is also no chance to get therapy or a second chance at a better life for the criminal. It is not fair for the family to suffer because someone in the family made a bad choice. (Pai 1).

Source E Pai, Varsha. "5 Pros and Cons of Capital Punishment." List Crown. N.p., 23 Sept. 2013. Web. 28 Feb. 2017.

Summary E1 Some cons of the death penalty include it being against human rights, the criminal does not suffer alone (they have families too), fails to address root problem and does not stop criminals from committing crimes, and consequences are irrevocable (Pai 1).

Source E Pai, Varsha. "5 Pros and Cons of Capital Punishment." List Crown. N.p., 23 Sept. 2013. Web. 28 Feb. 2017.

Quote F1 Government ... can't be trusted to control its own bureaucrats or collect taxes equitably or fill a pothole, much less decide which of its citizens to kill. (Prejean 60).

Source F Prejean, Helen. Dead Man Walking. New York: Vintage., n.d. Print.

Quote G1 William J. Brennan believes that, "Death is not only an unusually severe punishment, unusual in its pain, in its finality and in its enormity, but it serves no penal purpose more effectively than a less severe punishment; therefore the principle inherent in the clause that prohibits pointless infliction of excessive punishment when less severe punishment can adequately achieve the same purposes invalidates the punishment" ("Death Penalty Quotes").

Source G "Death Penalty Quotes." Death Penalty Quotes. N.p., 1976. Web. 28 Feb. 2017.

Summary H1 The death penalty is uncivilized, barbaric and considered "cruel and unusual punishment" by many people. The cost of an execution is much more than imprisoning an inmate for life. The death penalty doesn't really have an influence on stopping crime and doesn't seem to deter criminals. The community also tends to become more violent around the time of an execution and homicide rates go up due to validation of murder and imitation. Also, once you kill an innocent man, there is no going back if you find out later that he is rally innocent. Race, money, and local politics often influence the death sentence being given which is not fair. All in all, the death sentence is inhumane and contradicts itself; by killing a killer, you're saying that killing is okay? (Dan 1).

Source H Brook, Dan. "Kill the Death Penalty: 10 Arguments Against Capital Punishment." Common Dreams. N.p., 15 July 2014. Web. 28 Feb. 2017.

Quote I1 "Many that live deserve death. And some that die deserve life. Can you give it to them? Then do not be too eager to deal out death in judgement'' (Tolkien chapter 4).

Source I Tolkien, J. R. R., and Rob Inglis. The Fellowship of the Ring. London: HarperCollins, 2002. Print.