The committee exam-ined studies that have been conducted on deterrence and the death penalty since the 1976 Supreme Court decision in Gregg vs. Georgia, which ended a four-year morato-rium on executions. In this case, a correlation between the imposition of the death penalty and rates of a particular offence decreasing is not enough to be taken as proof of a deterrent effect. For example, it is reductive to claim, as the minister has, that the death penalty works as a deterrence simply because firearms robberies have fallen in Singapore. Common sense tells us that the most frightening thing for a human being is to lose their life; therefore, the death penalty is the best deterrent when it comes to discouraging people from carrying out the worst crimes. ... Argumentative Paper on the Pros of the Death Penalty. 3 (1975), pp. The 2017 Gallup Poll, found that around 55-percent of Americans were in favor to the death penalty.The 2017 poll is down about 5 percent from a similar poll that was conducted back in 2016. 1. whether the available evidence pro-vides a scientific basis for answering questions of if and how the death penalty affects homicide rates. 6. 5. If they realize that committing a serious crime will take them to the gallows, they are bound to think twice before acting. Excerpts from " The Ultimate Punishment: A Defense," (Harvard Law Review Association, 1986) “Execution of those who have committed heinous murders may deter … List of the Pros of Capital Punishment. It provides a deterrent against violent crime within a society. This is especially so in cases where the criminal feels immune to the other forms of punishment such as restriction on freedom of movement or even hard labor. 397 … uniquely effective deterrent to murder is especially important, since deterrence is the only major pragmatic argument on the pro-death penalty side.1 The purpose of this paper is to survey and evaluate the evidence for deterrence. It is quick, painless, and humane. Testimony in Favor of the Death Penalty Ernest van den Haag Professor of Jurisprudence and Public Policy, Fordham University. We are not asking whether the threat Deterrence is only marginally affected by the death penalty, and even then, it punishes one party to prevent others from doing something. Despite this fact, about 60% of the world still lives in a country where the death penalty has been retained. The fear of death affects everybody; criminals are no exception. 5. https://www.thoughtco.com/arguments-for-the-death-penalty-721136 Therefore, fear of death sentence does not make people stop committing homicides. We must define the question correctly. Punishment should … However, it does not matter entirely as that number still represents most Americans. Pro Death Penalty Arguments. 65, No. Rehabilitation failure: Giving someone a death sentence closes all doors for him/her to learn his/her mistakes. According to the National Academy of Sciences, "Research on the deterrent effect of capital punishment is uninformative about whether capital punishment increases, decreases, or has no effect on homicide rates." There is no proof that the death penalty deters criminals. The foremost argument put forth by pro death penalty activists is that it serves as a deterrent for others. Here are the capital punishment pros and cons to consider. No deterrence: According to research carried out, the death penalty does not deter people from executing any heinous crime. Isaac Ehrlich, "The Deterrent Effect of Capital Punishment: A Question of Life and Death," American Economic Review, Vol. Capital punishment presents the highest level of deterrence since death is indeed the ultimate punishment. It deters criminals from committing serious crimes. Death Penalty Pros.