Opposition Against Death Penalty Essay Example

The Death Penalty, also known as capital punishment is known to be one of the cruellest forms of punishment in the justice system. The main goal of the death penalty is to deter violent crimes such as murder, rape and treason. Today, most countries have abolished it, yet major nations like the USA, India and China still consider this practice. The death penalty is immoral and unethical, as it violates the human rights bill, and wrongful convictions could lead to innocent lives being lost because of a lack of evidence.

Every day people are sentenced to death and executed, with over 483 executions in 18 different countries in 2020. The risk of executing innocent lives can never be eliminated. For example, more than 200 prisoners sent to death row in the USA have been released from their inevitable death due to their innocence. Let's say you were sentenced to death row for a crime you did not commit, how would you feel? Countries that still use the death penalty are actively trying to discourage individuals from committing crimes but so far this has been proven to be completely inefficient. Even with such cruel punishment, these countries still have some of the highest crime rates compared to any other around the world.  

The death penalty is also unfair and unjust against people. The outcome between life and death is heavily influenced by the experience of an attorney and the race of the individual The death penalty itself is a crime, and two wrongs don’t make a right. In addition, people of colour are far more likely to be executed as there is growing evidence that racial bias continues in society, especially within the criminal justice system. In what world should innocent lives be wrongfully executed because of their skin colour or their incapability of affording an experienced lawyer.

To conclude, the opposition of the death penalty does not mean criminals should not be punished for their crimes. The punishment should be moral and should not violate human rights. An example of this would be life imprisonment. Not only would this be a reasonable punishment for the guilty but it also allows new evidence to be brought up in hopes of proving someone’s innocence.