Criminal Justice Question

Assignment #3-2 Reflection Essay “Death Penalty”

READ the following articles and watch the video:

• https://deathpenaltyinfo.org/facts-and-research/murder-rates/murder-rate-of-death-penalty-states-compared-to-non-death-penalty-states
• https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2018/08/02/5-facts-about-the-death-penalty/
• This TedTalk video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FJxUN-kNXNs

Think about the the observations in Chapter 13, and make sure to focus on the short “The Death Penalty and Deterrence” discussion on page 349. (The textbook author’s observation that current data does not show a link between the death penalty and reducing violent crime is consistent with other mainline research on the topic). Look also at the discussion of Innocence Projects in that same page of the textbook.

Think about that data, and then review and think about articles above. Finally, watch the video of the talk by a juror involved in a death penalty case and her reflections on the issue.

In your essay, reflect on

• Why you think community views on the death penalty conflict, even when the data about non-deterrence is relatively clear and one’s personal opinion on the death penalty can radically change once it becomes “personal” rather than an abstract concept.
• Has your opinion changed over time? Have the readings and video caused you to view the topic in any different way? What, if anything, have you discoverd about this topic from our study?
• What about the earlier topics of effective legal representation for poorer defendants, differences in race and death penalty, the role of religious leaders on the topic, and how community, culture, and upbringing caused the woman in the video to have a crisis when she actually had to participate in taking a life when before her jury service the topic seemed relatively straightforward? Thoughts ?

Your essay should be at least 2 double spaced pages and submitted through Blackboard here. It is worth 50 points and due byend of day October 9th. Because it is a reflection essay, no formal APA citation is required.

Answer preview

People have differing perspectives on whether the death penalty can prevent people from committing murder. The desire to prevent others from killing is the reason used to support the use of the death penalty (Nagin, 2018). Essentially, this concept argues that the threat of execution will force a substantial portion of individuals to refrain from committing murder (Nagin, 2018). The most critical concern should not be that people will be prevented from killing others because they will get executed. This is because there are other punishments that are effective at far less cost and lacking the risk of killing innocent defendants accused of murder (Nagin, 2018). As such, this paper will reflect on the death penalty, focusing on its efficacy.

745 Words