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Death Penalty

 

             Emotions, beliefs, and ideas all freely flowed as we began speaking about the death penalty. People from all over the country and Puerto Rico came to discuss issues regarding law and justice in the United States during the Presidential Classroom week. Debating about the death penalty allowed numerous ideas to be discussed. The debate ranged from discussions about economic, moral, and legal reasons both supporting and doubting the use of the death penalty. It was a truly heated debate starting with the legality of the death penalty.
             One of the most prevalent objections to the death penalty is its possible violation of the eighth amendment. According to the eighth amendment, the federal government is mandated not to inflict cruel and unusual punishment on its citizens. Some say that this barbaric practice of allowing the government to murder its citizens is not granted under our constitution. The death penalty has previously involved such cruel practices as shooting the convict to making the convict a conductor of electricity. How can we as a nation claim that this type of punishment is not cruel and unusual? Some claim that the methods used today are clearly not cruel because we, the society, allow these chemicals to work in a matter of seconds. Is this practice still not cruel? Imagine being strapped to a gurney and having needles put in your arm. This must be a truly terrifying experience. However, there is a counter-argument to the eighth amendment discussion. According to many, capital punishment was not considered "cruel and unusual" during the writing of the Constitution. Advances in medicine and technology have allowed for one of the painless means of deaths. The Supreme Court also has ruled numerous times about the death penalty failing to constitute as cruel and unusual. It is a system that has grown according to the technology. It has always been classified as one of the most calming ways of death.


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