Can capital punishment reduce crime how?

Answer 1

It actually does, but the problem is twofold at the present time. First, it is not done very much and when it is, people usually don't hear about it. Criminals know it's really unlikely to be executed and the worst they will likely ever face is life in prison. An air conditioned, comfortable cell with cable TV, a weight room, and 3 square meals a day. Second, the death penalty deters crime by instilling a fear of the judicial system and therefore a fear of doing things bad enough to warrant such a punishment. Fear is a psychological weapon, and therefore it is almost impossible to accurately test it's effectiveness.

Answer 2

It does only in the sense that if you commit a bad crime, you will be killed. That's tough enough for most people to stop.

However, the death penalty is one of the most controversial subjects in America. Most believe that it is not right to kill someone, as many religions are not about killing. However, there are still the good effects of the death penalty, such as creating less crime. No one at any time, past or present, after the death penalty has been carried out committed another crime. Many people given lesser sentences have done so. The conclusion is therefore obvious. I do not say the death penalty is correct in all circumstances, I am merely answering the question.

Answer 3

Scientific studies have consistently failed to find convincing evidence that the death penalty deters crime more effectively than other punishments. The most recent survey of research findings on the relation between the death penalty and homicide rates, conducted for the United Nations in 1988 and updated in 2002, concluded: "... it is not prudent to accept the hypothesis that capital punishment deters murder to a marginally greater extent than does the threat and application of the supposedly lesser punishment of life imprisonment."

(Reference: Roger Hood, The Death Penalty: A World-wide Perspective, Oxford, Clarendon Press, third edition, 2002, p. 230)

Answer 4

No, the death penalty is not proven to decrease the amount of crime. Crime doesn't drive crime policy. For instance Police chiefs rank the death penalty last as a way of reducing violent crime, placing it behind curbing drug abuse. Police chiefs do not believe that murderers think about the range of possible punishments. The murder rate in states that do not have the death penalty is consistently lower than in states with the death penalty. The South, which carries out over 80% of the executions in the U.S., has the highest murder rate of the four regions.

Answer 5

Yes.