To understand the debate over Capital Punishment, it is necessary to identify the purpose of The Criminal Justice System. Capital Punishment seems to answers to the demands of society: to punish those who commit crimes and to reduce violence overall. But the question of capital punishment is, if it is regurlarly and fairly applied.
Many people in the actual Us society demand vengeance and retribution for violent criminal conduct. Retribute Justice means that the criminal must be made to pay for the crime, by a crude mathematics that demands the scale of justice be balanced. This type of justice is fueled by hatred and satisfied only with full and complete revenge. The more cruel, the more satisfying.
On the other hand, Retribute Justice has a bad history, as it has historically been used to enforce a class society by oppresing the poor and protecting the rich. It has been used to impose racism by applying the law in an unfairly way upon African-American citizens. In this way, the prision system has been linked to a 20th century form of slavery.
Many people argue that Capital Punishment is a deterrent to murder. And the worth of Death Penalty as a deterrent to crimes have ocassioned a great deal of debate. But the results simply have been incoclusive. This may be because whatever deterrence factor exists for Capital Punishment probably exists almost equally for Life Imprisionment. A far grater deterrent than either, would be, more efficient police investigation. An average of twenty-two thousand murders and non-negligent manslaughters are comitted anually in the US but only two thirds, of fifteen thousand suspects, are arrested.
The reality is that severe punishment is not working. Kids and petty offenders under the current system become hardened, violent and persistent criminals. Many who seek to eliminate the culture of violence assert that Capital Punishment actually exacerbates the level and intensity of violence in the community.
To cope with this situation, some people are promoting a Restorative kind of justice which offers a nonviolent response to the violence done. The focus of it, is the separation of the violent person from the society. With a peaceful attitude and a nonvegeful response, the cycle of violence can be broken. In order to foster a less violent society, the treatment of the offender should be as human and nonviolent as posible. Rehabilitation of the offender ought to be a necessary condition of parole. Life Imprisionment without the possibility of a parole ought to be the alternative to Capital Punishment.
In my personal opinion, Restorative justice seeks to eliminate the culture of violence and replace it with a culture of caring. We must not allow our hearts to be fill with hatred, anger, rage and the desire of revemge when we confront an act of violence. Restorative justive does not seek forgiveness for those who commit a crime. But it asks us to protect ourselves from the feeling of violence.
Gabriela Garcia Fernandez
Article's Title: Capital Punishment and Violence
Source: http://www.findarticles.com
Date of Publication: February 2004
Author: Robert Grant.
No comments:
Post a Comment