Capital punishment has been used in America since the early 1600s after being colonized by Europeans:
Italian philosopher, Cesare Beccaria, believed that the form of punishment used should most benefit society. Although written in Italy, Beccaria's Essay on Crimes and Punishments contributed to the birth of an abolitionist movement in America:
1764:"It was Beccaria, though, who focused the attention of philosophers and political leaders on the issue. In addition to its effects in Europe, the Essay [1764] also had a significant effect on the thinking of abolitionists in America..." - Michael Kronenwetter, Capital Punishment:
A Reference Handbook |
1775:
"By the start of the American Revolution [1775], the death penalty was used in all 13 colonies ... The colonies had roughly comparable death statutes which covered arson, piracy, treason, murder, sodomy, burglary, robbery, rape, horse-stealing, slave rebellion, and often counterfeiting. Hanging was the usual sentence."
- Michael Reggio, History of the Death Penalty
This video explains early forms of the death penalty and protests to the penalty in the United States.
1787:"To most constitutional lawyers there seems little doubt that the Founding Fathers intended to allow for the death penalty in drawing up the US Constitution of 1787." - Robert Singh, Governing America: The Politics of a
Divided Democracy |
The United States Constitution intended the use of capital punishment, but there was not a list of crimes punishable by death until the creation of the Punishment of Crimes Act.
1790:"Most important was the Punishment of Crimes Act [1790], the first listing of federal crimes and their punishment. In addition to treason and counterfeiting of federal records, the crimes included murder, disfigurement, and robbery committed in federal jurisdictions or on the high seas." - First Federal Congress Project, First Federal Congress: Creation of the Judiciary
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1833-1835:"...public executions were attacked as cruel. Sometimes tens of thousands of eager viewers would show up to view hangings; local merchants would sell souvenirs and alcohol. Fighting and pushing would often break out as people jockeyed for the best view of the hanging or the corpse! Onlookers often cursed the widow or the victim and would try to tear down the scaffold or the rope for keepsakes... Many states enacted laws providing private hangings." - Michael Reggio, History of the Death Penalty
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1955-1972:"The movement against capital punishment revived again between 1955 and 1972. England and Canada completed exhaustive studies which were largely critical of the death penalty and these were widely circulated in the U.S. Death row criminals gave their own moving accounts of capital punishment in books and film." - Laura Randa, Society's Final Solution
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In the case Furman v. Georgia, the United States Supreme Court ruled that capital punishment was cruel and unusual because the jury would undoubtedly be biased, therefore in violation of the Eighth Amendment. However, capital punishment was not completely unconstitutional. Many states created laws where death was the automatic punishment for certain crimes such as first-degree murder.
1972:
"The Furman decision invalidated the death penalty statutes in several states. Thirty-five states responded to this ruling, not by abolishing capital punishment, but by using Furman as a guideline for developing a constitutionally acceptable statute. During this moratorium, hundreds of sentences were commuted to life imprisonment." - Thomas Blomberg, PhD and Karol Lucken, PhD, American Penology: A History of Control
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In a series of five court cases, Gregg v Georgia, Proffitt v. Florida, Jurek v. Texas, Woodson v. North Carolina, and Roberts v. Louisiana, the United States Supreme Court ruled that capital punishment was constitutional for aggravated murder, therefore reinstating the death penalty:
1976:
"On appeal, the U.S. Supreme Court affirmed Gregg's conviction and death sentence because Georgia's revised death penalty statute provided for bifurcated trials, consideration of mitigating circumstances of the defendant and the crime, and appellate review of capital sentences. The Court affirmed these guidelines because Georgia intended them to prevent arbitrary and discriminatory imposition of the death penalty." - Marvin D. Free Jr., PhD, Racial Issues in Criminal Justice: The Case of African Americans, 2003
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![The United States of America](http://www.weebly.com/uploads/2/4/1/5/24159712/regionsmap.gif)
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The maps on the left show capital punishment statistics in the United States. Alaska and Hawaii do not practice the death penalty. |
The graphs to the right show that over time, the death penalty has changed significantly in the United States. Less forms of execution have been used. Execution numbers have increased since 1608, but have decreased since the mid-1900s due to a strong abolitionist movement.
Student phone interview with Michelle Baldwin-Friendy, social worker, about why people commit crimes: |
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