Is the Death Penalty Cruel and Unusual Punishment?

Is the Death Penalty Cruel and Unusual Punishment?

Essay written by Anonymous

In order to determine whether the death penalty is to be considered cruel and unusual punishment, it is necessary to first define each word in order to get full understanding of the issue being assessed. According to the Merriam-Webster collegiate dictionary, cruel is defined as: "disposed to inflict pain or suffering devoid of humane feelings." Unusual is defined as: "not usual, uncommon, or rare." Punishment is defined as: "suffering pain or loss that serves as retribution." Should capital punishment be viewed as retribution used to cause pain or suffering without humane feelings, and is it uncommon?

The message that is sent out by killing a murderer is 'If you kill, we kill.' Punishment by death is the ultimate punishment and one that cannot be taken back. A jury is instructed to determine guilt beyond a reasonable doubt, but with a punishment as final as death, any doubt should be reason enough for a person to live. Forcing a jury to decide whether a person should live or die is wrong. If the jury decides the person should die, then they have just committed the same crime they