I came across an article on ACLU referred to as A question of Innocence while trying to find proof that the death penalty has taken innocent persons' lives. It is said that in Arizona there is an astonishing '113 inmates that have been found innocent and released from death row'(http://www.aclu.org/capital-punishment/question-innocence). This information doesn't cease to amaze me considering the death penalty has continued to be apart of the American judicial system. As studies are ongoing on the topic of innocent inmates encountering the death penalty; A specific study by a Columbia University professor has overwhelmed me with disbelief from the government.
James Liebman, a Columbia University professor, conducted a study revealing 'an astonishing 82 percent of death row inmate did not deserve the death penalty'. (http://www.aclu.org/capital-punishment/question-innocence) It has become evident that the American hasn't made a perfunctory attempt is being made to relieve a habituated way of thinking. Studies have also shown that 'inmates that have been found innocent because someone has came forward to admit to the crime ' This article also provides case studies of inmates that have been proven to be innocent after extensive years on death row. In A question of Innocence it has been shown that 'In several cases, college or law school students investigated cases and unearthed essential evidence.'(http://www.aclu.org/capital-punishment/question-innocence), which is even more astonishing to know that individuals who has not been in practice for elongated years can uncover such things and save innocent lives.
This just goes to show that the American judicial system requires long amount of review on their approach to the death penalty. As of this article my opinion stays the same; The death penalty is an ineffective way to punish criminals and inflict fear upon civilians. Capital punishment shouldn't be enforced in any judicial system as it has been proven to be a faulty way to in force laws.
Capital punishment is one of the most controversial topic in our society as it is a infringement on the laws that the justice system is trying to enforced throughout our nation. After reading an article in The Nation titled Questioning Capital Punishment it has giving me an insight of the arising questions in Maryland and California. This article shows that capital punishment is a faulty consequence, based on their promises and the infringement on human rights. It is said that ' the three-drug cocktail is suppose to sedate inmates and kill them quickly and painlessly '(Shapiro, 2006) but it has become an issue after the incident of Angel Nieves in Florida. This inmate was to be lethally injected, with these promises, and thereby sedated while the procedure continue but instead was conscious and "... was left conscious, grimacing in pain and struggling for breath."(Shapiro, 2006) ; it then continues to say that, "It took half an hour and a second round of injections before the spectacle ended." (Shapiro, 2006)
This then brings the question to mind of ' how many inmate had been conscious during the lethal injection procedure and went through agonizing pain? ' (Shapiro, 2006), but also brings the fact that many innocent men and women have been executed and therefore suffered such pain for faulty laws and procedures. Another question that has risen after reading this article is ' Are executioners about laws against killing another human being and are they to blame if an inmate is conscious during this procedure? ' This article has helped me to come to the conclusion that the death penalty should be illegal as other procedures similar to this, such as euthanasia, are. It also shows that there is an double standard to what the government perceives as 'right' by law.
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