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Death Penalty – Effective or Immoral?

How many countries in the world use death penalty? Does Capital punishment really deter crimes and what do different religions say about it?
What do the statics show ? These are common questions and thoughts about death penalty.

112 countries in the world have now abolished the death penalty in law or practice and 83 countries still retain and use it, but there are much less countries which actually execute.
More than three countries a year have abolished the death penalty in the last decade.

In 2002. 81% of all known executions took place in Iran, China and the USA.

Against Death Penalty

Although there are a few places in the Bible you can find support for death penalty, almost every
religious group in the USA looks on executions
as immoral. It is written i The New Testament
that we should not play God and that we should
follow Jesus' example and show mercy.

Studies show that during the 19th century 400
people have been convicted of capital crimes they
did not commit. Of those were 23 people executed.
A wrongful execution cannot be reversed but a
life without parole can.

Since 1973, 107 prisoners have been released from death row in the USA after evidence proved their innocence of the crimes they were sentenced for. The reasons for them being convicted for a crime they did not commit was prosecutorial or police misconduct; the use of unreliable witness testimony, physical evidence or confession.
Other prisoners think that death penalty is racist because the statistics show it. Two-thirds of any case involving a black or Hispanic killing a white result in the death penalty
A black person is five times more likely to get the death penalty than a white and those who murdered whites were more likely to get the sentence than those who murdered blacks.

According to opponents scientific executions have not deterred crimes more effectually than other punishment.

Family and friends of murder victims go through a horrible time after the loss but the executions do not help people heal their wounds nor do their pain. The money that puts on the executions should go to counselling and other assistance to help the victim's family.

Capital punishment violates the right to life.

For Death Penalty

Christian and Jewish scriptures support Capital punishment

The supporters think that the fear of death penalty may stop others from committing crimes.
In 1976 there was a pause, where there was forbidden to execute people and the statistics from that support the death penalty. Other have also showed an increase of murders during moratoriums.
Even those who are not released but are in prison can murder again. At least five federal prison- officers have been killed since December 1982. Had these prisoners been executed innocent people would have lived today.
The Campaign to end the death penalty gives reasons for why the punishment should be abolished and one of the arguments is “the death penalty condemns the innocent to die”.
The supporters say that there is absolutely no proof for that statement. In the USA there is a jury with six members who are selected very carefully. They have to decide – beyond reasonable doubts – if the convicted is guilty or not.
So the possibility that a person is being executed for a crime he did not commit is very small.
And it continues to decrease thanks to the improvement in forensic science.
It is true that death row-prisoners have been released but it's not proved they were innocent.

Opponents to the death penalty have many organisations and are active in the media with articles and debates. But the supporters have very few organisations, they support in silence.

I don't think anyone has the right to take someone else's life even if the person in question has committed a horrible homicide. If we kill the murderer we become murderers too!
Instead of killing them we should put them in prison for the rest of their lives. In that way we can release them if the evidence proves their innocence.