Improvements for the Texas Capital Punishment System Essay

Improvements for the Texas Capital Punishment System Few issues in the United States today are as emotionally charged and controversial as the death penalty. Formally know as capital punishment, the death penalty has been hotly debated not only as a legal issue, but as a religious, ethical, and political one, historically as well as in the present day. Although many states currently administer the death penalty, Texas has been put in the spot light this past year because of the recent presidential race. The moral question of whether or not it is right to kill another human being is ever-present in todays society. However, when looking at it from a political standpoint, one must also consider whether or†¦show more content†¦However, this is a very non-factual picture. There is very little to no blood in electrocutions. Secondly, the method of choice is currently lethal injection. In response to those who fondly quote the eighth amendment, the Constitution actually makes reference to the death penalty not one, but twice. The first occurrence is in the fifth amendment of the Bill of Rights, which says that, no person shall be held to answer for a capital...crime, unless on a presentment or indictment of a Grand Jury... nor be deprived of life... without due process of law (Stewart 21). In other words, the Constitution is specifying that the death penalty may be used, but warns that there are certain stipulations that must first be met. The second mentioning is in the Fourteenth Amendment which says states shall not, deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process (Stewart 22). Once again, the same law regarding the death penalty is passed on to the states. In either case, the constitution is permitting the death penalty, but stating that there must be a due process in which the verdict is made. The death penalty was legalized in Texas in 1923. It was instituted as an alternative to lynching and county level executions. Since Texas was a rather prejudice state, lynching were common after the abolition of slavery. After the death penalty was instituted, the number of lynchings was significantlyShow MoreRelatedCapital Punishment : An Ultimate Torture Method Essay1352 Words   |  6 Pages Capital punishment has been used as a penalty for criminal behavior for many years; however, its’ utilization has not been constant throughout American history. The basis of capital punishment has undergone a number of changes and improvements in the past, essentially alternating in and out of public favor. At its’ start, capital punishment was ultimately used as a means of torture. Criminals were bludgeoned, boiled, burned, torn apart by animals, etc.—it was an ultimate torture method. ThroughoutRead MoreShould The Death Penalty Be Abolished?. 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