Compromise Brief

It is evident that the conclusion of whether Capital Punishment should be inflicted is dependent on the case. The death penalty is known as extremely expensive because of the numerous appeals and law aspects and it can be referred to as inhumane. However, certain instances when the murderer has committed a heinous crime of mass killings or even if the murderer is just guilty without a doubt, the death penalty is necessary.

Since the Bible upholds the death penalty for a variety of crimes, including murder, no one should feel guilty for what is necessary (Robinson). If the Bible states that the death penalty is necessary at times, then there is little basis for people to oppose it on religious grounds. Executing convicted murderers when the circumstances warrant it the only appropriate way to render justice. Some crimes are too atrocious that execution is the only reasonable response.

It is much more costly to execute someone with the death penalty than to have that person spend the rest of his or her life in jail. In death penalty cases on average according to deathpenaltyinfo.org, it costs about $470,000 extra at the trial level. The appeals for death penalty cases versus other cases can add $100,000. Petitioning these cases can add $137,000. The money saved by not trying death penalty cases could be put to higher security in prisons.

The other reason it was agreed that capital punishment may be necessary is recidivism or escape from prison to murder again. Murder and escaping prison has existed since the dawn of time. Clyde Barrow and Bonnie Parker, a married couple in the 1930’s, were thought to have committed a combine 13 murders throughout 5 escapes (FBI History). Granted that security prisons are much more adept today than in the 1930’s, it is still a well-known fact that no prison is capable of securing an inmate positively. In 2001, seven convicts escaped and murdered on Christmas Eve in Irving Texas. The escapees were able to break out of the maximum-security Connally Unit State Prison near Karnes City, Texas. The convicts left a note reading, “You haven’t heard the last of us (Crilley).” Incidents such as this make our country an unsafe place. Without the death penalty there is always a real chance that these murderers can be out in public at any time.

The idea that lethal injection is a humane way to kill a criminal could be true if the drugs were researched further. As of now, the drug combination does not work 100% of the time. Instead of numbing the victim and killing quickly, the drugs simply paralyze so the victim cannot speak or show their pain and kill slowly. Being electrocuted is a painful death as well. Sometimes the victim does not die the first time and has to be shocked again. If the technology was researched further and was determined to be more effective in killing, the death penalty would at least be a little more humane.

The statement that the death penalty is a deterrent to crime is neither true nor false. It is true that the thought of being killed would stop some people from killing, but if someone really wanted to murder they would do it whether they would get in trouble or not. This is not a viable argument for or against the death penalty.

Works Cited

Crilley, Jeff. “Seven escaped convicts still believed to be in Dallas, Texas, area.” CNN. 2 Jan 2001. 23 Nov 1007. <http://archives.cnn.com/2001/US/01/02/texas.escapees.02/>

Robinson, Bruce A. “Capital Punishment – The Death Penalty.” Religious Tolerance. 1 Jan. 2006. Ontario Consultants of Religious Tolerance. 14 Nov. 2007. <http://www.religioustolerance.org/executb.htm>

“Famous Cases: Bonnie and Clyde.” FBI History. 10 June 2007. 2 Dec 2007. http://www.fbi.gov/libref/historic/famcases/clyde/clyde.htm.

Death Penalty Information Center. 19 November 2007.
http://www.deathpenaltyinfo.org/article.php?did=108