Capital Punishment

Capital Punishment

Capital punishment or the death penalty is a legal

process whereby a person is put to death by the state as

a punishment for a crime. Capital punishment is a

relevant issue for every human society and it constitutes

a “dilemma of hidden human divinity versus hubristic

death penalty.” The concept of a right to life is central to

debates on the issues of capital punishment.

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Definition Capital punishment also called the death penalty, is the execution of a

convicted criminal by the state as punishment for crimes known

as capital crimes or capital offences.

According to Encyclopedia Britannica “capital punishment, also called

death penalty, execution of an offender sentenced to death after

conviction by a court of law of a criminal offense. Capital punishment

should be distinguished from extrajudicial executions carried out

without due process of law.•

Historical Background

Capital punishment is the lawful infliction of death as a punishment

and since ancient times it has been used for a wide variety of

offences. The bible prescribes death for murder and many other

crimes, including kidnapping and witchcraft. By 1500 in England, only

major felonies carried the death penalty- treason, murder, larceny,

burglary, rape, and arson. Venezuela (1853) and Portugal (1867)

were the first nations to abolish the death penalty altogether. In the

United States Michigan was first state to abolish it for murder in 1847.

Today, it is virtually abolished in all of Western Europe and most of

Latin America. Britain effectively abolished capital punishment in

1965.

In Roman Law Society Continue ….

In the Roman law the principle is continuously applied from the

fifth century that the death penalty (whether by decapitation,

burning, or throwing down a precipice) is due to all grave crimes

(including murder, arson, perjury, treason, etc.); but in practise this

was mitigated. In the last two centuries of the republic capital

punishment was seldom applied, to members of the upper classes

at least.

In Roman Law Society Continue …But it was never abolished, and when the

reorganization of the Roman system took place under imperial legislation it was again more frequently employed, even against Roman citizens. Thus at the beginning of the Christian era it was an accepted institution throughout the Roman Empire.

Types of Capital Punishment

 • Hanging• Decapitation• Burning at the Stak• Drowning• Crucifixion• Quartering by Horses• Wheel• Stoning.• Strangulation• Impalement

Capital Punishment in Bangladesh

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In Bangladesh we exercise death penalty as capital punishment to execute the

murderer or a convict of vital crime from ancient time. From which time we

exercise it didn’t know. Though the sentences of death penalty pass frequently

from the courts but the executions of those sentences are not frequent as well.

Every year very few convicts are executed in Bangladesh. Sometimes the

Government of the country releases the convict by showing political issue.

In Bangladesh penal provisions have been made in Penal Code* 1860.These

following eight types of offences is punishable with death penalty. 

 

Capital Punishment in Bangladesh

• 1.Murder    :   Sec-302• 2.Murder by life convict: Sec-303• 3.Abatement of suicide of child or insane person: Sec-305• 4.Attempt to murder by life convict causing hurt: Sec-307• 5.Dacoit with murder: Sec-396• 6.Giving or fabricating false evidence with to procure

conviction of capital offence: Sec-194• 7.Waging or attempting to wage war against Bangladesh:

Sec-121• 8.Abatement of mutiny: Sec-131 

Reasons to Support Death Penalty

Arguments in favour of Capital Punishments Continue…. 

• The death penalty gives conclusion Life in prison just means the criminal is still

around to haunt the victim. A death sentence brings finality to a horrible chapter in the lives of these family members.

• It creates another form of crime deterrent Crime would run rampant as never before if

there wasn’t some way to deter people from committing the acts. Prison time is an effective deterrent, but with some people, more is needed.

Arguments in favour of Capital Punishments Continue…

 

• Our justice system shows more sympathy for criminals than it does victims

 It’s time we put the emphasis of our criminal justice system back on protecting the victim rather than the accused. Remember, a person who’s on death row has almost always committed crimes before this. A long line of victims have been waiting for justice. We need justice for current and past victims.

• Modern crime scene science can now effectively eliminate almost all uncertainty

One of the biggest arguments against the death penalty is the possibility of error. Sure, we can never completely eliminate all uncertainty, but nowadays, it’s about as close as you can get. DNA testing is over 99 percent effective.

Arguments in favour of Capital Punishments Continue….

• Prisoner parole or escapes can give criminals another chance to kill  Perhaps the biggest reason to keep the death penalty is to prevent the

crime from happening again. The parole system nowadays is a joke. Even if a criminal is sentenced to life without possibility of parole, he still has a chance to kill while in prison, or even worse, escape and go on a crime/murder spree.

 • It contributes to the problem of overpopulation in the prison

system. 

• It gives prosecutors another bargaining chip in the plea bargain process, which is essential in cutting costs in an overcrowded court system. 

 

Arguments against Capital Punishments Continue….

 

 • Denial of basic right – According to Humans Right Association capital

punishment overrules our most basic human right – the right to life. Human life has fundamental value. The blessedness of human life is denied by the death penalty

• The possibility of error –The most common and most cogent argument against capital punishment is that sooner or later, innocent people will get killed, because of mistakes or flaws in the justice system

• Unfair Judgment – In many death penalty cases the defendants remain poorly represented or not represented at all because of their poverty, which cause greater injustice. It also notice a kind of racial discrimination this happens due to varied reasons. Because the poor can offer very low compensation the defense lawyers are often incompetent, resulting in losing the case. Due to prejudice and bias, poor people, and people from minority sections become soft target for such capital punishments  

Arguments against Capital Punishments Continue….

 

• Lack of Deterrence – The purpose of any punishment should be deterrence from repeating the same act. But, according to the statistics available, the death penalty has not been effective in controlling the homicide rate. The studies have revealed the shocking truth that executions actually increase the murder rate. That means the capital punishment does not deter violent crime. According to a New York Times study, the last 20 years witnessed 48% homicide rate in states with the implementation of capital punishment compared to 23% in the states without capital punishment.

• Justifying circumstances – Sometimes, persons suffering from emotional trauma, abandonment, violence, neglect or destructive social environment commit such heinous crimes. These mitigating situations can have devastating effect on their humanity. So, it is unfair to hold them fully responsible for their crimes. It is our communal responsibility to show some sympathy to some extent. It’s generally accepted that people should not be punished for their actions unless they have a guilty mind – which requires them to know what they are doing and that it’s wrong.

Arguments against Capital Punishments Continue….

 

• Effects on society – Capital Punishment is itself a premeditated

murder. This is unacceptable even it is inflicted by state authority

as it lowers the value of life. In fact, such act can only brutalize the

society. “Revenge is essential” can become a society attitude. By

witnessing such acts, our own mental makeup starts believing that

violence is necessary to curb the wrongdoings. By giving capital

punishment, the family of the victim is permanently traumatized and

victimized. They are often punished by their loved ones without

their fault, even though they are innocent.• .

Morality on Capital Punishment

Morality: "Ultimately, the moral question surrounding capital punishment in America has less to do with whether those convicted of violent crime deserve to die than with whether state and federal governments deserve to kill those whom it has imprisoned. The legacy of racial apartheid, racial bias, and ethnic discrimination is unavoidably evident in the administration of capital punishment in America. Death sentences are imposed in a criminal justice system that treats you better if you are rich and guilty than if you are poor and innocent. This is an immoral condition that makes rejecting the death penalty on moral grounds not only defensible but necessary for those who refuse to accept unequal or unjust administration of punishment.“

Bryan Stevenson, JD Professor of Law at New York University School of Law"Close to Death: Reflections on Race and Capital Punishment in America," from Debating the Death Penalty: Should America Have Capital Punishment? The Experts on Both Sides Make Their Best Case2004

Islam and Capital Punishment

 Scholars of Islam hold it to be permissible but

the victim or the family of the victim has the right to pardon. In Islamic jurisprudence (Fiqh), to forbid what is not forbidden is forbidden. Consequently, it is impossible to make a case for abolition of the death penalty, which is explicitly endorsed.

Sharia Law or Islamic law may require capital punishment; there is great variation within Islamic nations as to actual capital punishment

Islam and Capital Punishment "Whoever slays a soul, unless it be for

manslaughter or for anarchy in the land, it is as though he slew all men; and whoever keeps it alive, it is as though he kept alive all men; and certainly Our apostles came to them with clear arguments, but even after that many of them certainly act extravagantly in the land.” Chapter 5, Verse 120

"...do not kill the soul which Allah has forbidden except for the requirements of justice; this He has enjoined you with that you may understand." Chapter 6, Verse 165

Islam and Capital Punishment

According to the Islamic injunctions, death penalty can be administered in two cases only.

Firstly, if a person is physically harmed or injured by another, Islam directs the state to provide justice to the individual (or his relatives) by letting him/them harm or injure the guilty to the same extent, as he himself was guilty of harming his victim, in the first place. This concept of punishing the guilty is known as 'Qisaas', which means 'to follow suit' or to deal with the criminal in a manner similar to the act originally committed. In other words, the criminal is to be killed or injured in the same way as he himself killed or injured his victim...

Islam and Capital PunishmentSecondly, the death penalty may be

administered if the criminal is guilty of 'Hiraabah' or 'Fasaad fil Ardh'. 'Hiraabah' and/or 'Fasaad fil Ardh' include crimes committed against the community, rather than an individual or crimes that are of the nature of religious persecution or crimes committed with the objective of spreading a wave of terror through the community or crimes committed against the state..."

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Conclusion

• An issue that has continually created tension in today’s

society is whether the death penalty serves as a justified

and valid form of punishment.  Whenever the word “death

penalty” comes up, extremists from both sides start

yelling out their arguments.  One side says deterrence,

the other side says there’s a potential of executing an

innocent man; one says justice, retribution, and

punishment; the other side says execution is murder.  

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