The death penalty is an issue that has been debated in the past for many years. In today’s society and in the future it is an issue that will continue to be debated over for many years to come. Some believe the death penalty should be abolished while others believe the death penalty should remain an open and often used option. Although there are things that could be changed in dealing with the death penalty, it should not be completely abolished. The death penalty should be administered to those who commit heinous crimes, whether it involves murder or some other violent crime. It cheapens the life of an innocent murder victim to say that society has no right to keep the murderer from ever killing again. (Stewart) Society owes it to the victims of these criminals to hold them responsible for their actions and to have them pay the ultimate price with their own life.
One can look at judicial history and tell that just because someone is sentenced to death does not mean that it will actually happen. These people that are sentenced to death often times sit on death row for many years. For instance in Florida a spree killer named William Elledge, who confessed to his crimes and has openly discussed his guilt in interviews, will soon complete his 33rd year on death row with his appeals still unresolved. (Von Drehle)
People in today’s society have become so liberal that they are willing to give everyone a second chance. People want to give the man who rapes and murders the same second chance as the boy who steals from the grocery store. It may just be that society goes through changes throughout time and they way criminals are dealt with changes, but people should see a huge difference in the effect of those two crimes has on the rest of the population. People are not going to live in fear about going to the grocery store because a little boy has stolen something, however they are going to think twice about going shopping by themselves at night when...