For years, capital punishment has been a controversial issue. The death penalty represents only one response to the age-old problem of what to do with the worst element of human society. Many arguments can be made for and against capital punishment. Many ancient societies recognized the idea that certain crimes deserved capital punishment. Early civilizations believed in the rule of “an eye for an eye” (Exodus 21:23-25). Today a total of 90 countries and territories currently enforce the death penalty. In the other 61 countries around the world, capital punishment no longer exists. Although most countries support the death penalty for high crimes, this method of dealing with criminals is not without problems. The death penalty has a very detailed history. As far back as the Ancient Laws of China, the death penalty has been in existence. In the 18th century, Hammurabi’s Code codified the death penalty for twenty-five different crimes; murder was not one of these (Reggio). Even though murder is the most commonly associated crime with the death penalty). Many centuries after Hammurabi’s Code came what was known as Mosaic Law. Mosaic Law codified many capital crimes. One of the most famous executions under the Mosaic Law was the crucifixion of Jesus Christ. Crucifixion was a common way of death for capital punishment. Other means of death were drowning at sea, being buried alive, being beaten to death, and impalement. All of these were ways to satisfy capitol punishment. But the death penalty was not the same for everyone. Capitol punishment was different depending on if you were of royal nobility, a freeman, or a slave. The lower in status one was the more prolonged and cruel the means of death would be. By the 10th century, hanging from the gallows was the most frequent and effective method for the death penalty. Then in the Middle Ages, torture was accompanied with capital punishment. Even back then women and men had different punishments. Women were normally burned for their crimes. For men it was worse. Men were not only hung but also drawn and quartered too. But this type of punishment was mainly for the lower class. Nobility had a quick and painless death. Beheading was normally their choice of punishment. In 1531, boiling to death was sometimes used. Researchers have found records stating that some people boiled for up to two hours before dying. In Great Britain, the number of offences that were punishable by death steadily rose until the 1700’s. In 1888, New York approved the dismantling of its gallows and the construction of the United States’ first electric chair. The electric chair is exactly what it sounds like. It is a chair that the victim is strapped into and then thousands of volts of electricity are run through his body. Other states at that time soon followed New York’s lead and started to use the electric chair for the death penalty (Reggio). During the early 1900’s capital punishment abolition groups sprang up, although they had little effect. England and Canada undertook strenuous studies that were largely critical of the death penalty around this time. With all of these anti-capital punishment groups, controversy soon arose. Because of this uproar, more “humanitarian” ways of executing the death penalty were created. These more compassionate methods are the gas chamber and lethal injection. The gas chamber has a single chair in the center of a small room. The criminal is then strapped into the chair, the door is closed, and poisonous gas is then pumped into the room. Lethal injection is when a person is strapped to a chair and then injected with a poisonous chemical. These two methods along with the electric chair bring us to today. Even in today’s society there is controversy over the death penalty. |
