Preferably...can someone give me arguments for the death penalty?
For some reason, this debate often resides around retribution. But our system is not this eye-for-an-eye manner of justice. The rationale is not simply "You killed someone, so we're gonna kill you back." In fact, the manner of death required in this country by the death penalty is meant to avoid suffering as much as possible, and to ensure the method is neither cruel nor unusual.
If we were merely talking about retribution, then this maxim would not apply. There is something greater at work here. The U.S. courts have somehow put themselves (or have been put) in a position to determine whether or not someone deserves to die.
What's interesting is that many homicides occur with very reasonable motives - the killer felt that the victim did deserve to die. But this is not taken into account, unless we are discussing the charges themselves.
Once someone has been convicted, their punishment - i.e., what they deserve - is handed out. The judicial system uses its impartiality as grounds for making this determination. It is only at this moment when analysis of the death penalty can take place.
Some arguments rest on the value of human life, the cost of keeping a prisoner in jail, etc. But these are all red herrings - they don't really get to the hear of the matter as to whether or not a court should be able to dole out death to violent offenders.
Some states clearly think that courts should not have this power and do not have death penalty sentences. Some states, like Texas, have virtually installed an express lane for the execution of violent offenders.
Ultimately, it's a societal issue, not a moral one.
The courts are not determined with the morality of an action, but rather the legality of it. This is crucial when trying to understand the justice system and is usually where most arguments fall short - trying to apply moral justice to legal matters.
If we are to operate in a highly functioning sophisticated society, we must cede certain individual powers to a government body. In the case of the death penalty, it is this government's choice to exercise its power in this manner and we must accept this.
Human error can cause innocent people to be executed, and this is one of the arguments against the death penalty. But this misses the point of the discussion. We are talking about the death penalty
simpliciter and as such it must be discussed in a theoretical vacuum.
