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Death Penalty
The death penalty is unjust and inhumane for nations to carry out. In addition, it is irrational for the United States government to choose to condemn an individual to death. The death penalty should be banned. The main reasons the death penalty must be eliminated is for the inequality of race, gender, and class. The punishment isn’t a crime deterrent, and isn’t cost effective. Also, the potential error within the judicial system with capital punishment leads to the end of an individuals’ life, a punishment which isn’t irreversible were the error to be found. The idea of having a choice to condemn a person to death is barbaric and violates the cruel article in the Bill of Rights.[1] Consider the following example: Gary Graham, a black male, 17 year old was executed on June 23, 2000 for robbery, rape, and the murder of Bobby Lambert, a 53 year old, in 1981.[2] His death believed to be part of the genocide of blacks in America. Errors of the Graham case were the twenty-two other crimes he was accused of, the assumption of the witnesses, and the denied time to determine if Graham should be sentenced to death or put on parole. In the twenty-two crimes Graham was charged for, he pled guilty for 10 cases and crime spree, but pled not guilty for the murder of Bobby Lambert. Acclaimed innocent, Graham fought till his death, pleading the innocence of the many cases he was accused of. His lawyer asked the US Supreme Court, on an act of clemency, to give more time and tried a civil suit which was all denied.[3] More importantly, presidential candidate, George W. Bush, and the Texas governor refused to reprieve the case. Bush’s argument was that the case had been reviewed by thirty three states and federal judges. Another default to the case of Graham was the victims who only spotted 20-30 feet away from the witnesses’ eye.[4] From a face to face line up of the description of the perpetrator, it led to Gary Graham. Two other witnesses were at the scene of the crime, acclaimed


Cited: "A Hanging." George Orwell. Web. 30 Mar. 2012. . "A List Of Fallacious Arguments." Don Lindsay Archive. Web. 31 Mar. 2012. . "American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) - Death Penalty - ProCon.org." Death Penalty ProCon.org. Web. 20 Apr. 2012. . "American Civil Liberties Union." American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU). Web. 20 Apr. 2012. . "Capital Punishment in Texas." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 18 Apr. 2012. Web. 20 Apr. 2012. . "DEATH PENALTY IN 2011." Abolish the Death Penalty. Web. 27 Mar. 2012. . "Death Penalty : Alternatives to the Death Penalty." Death Penalty : Alternatives to the Death Penalty. Web. 20 Apr. 2012. . "Death Penalty : Deterrence." Death Penalty : Deterrence. Web. 20 Apr. 2012. . "Death Penalty : Facts." Death Penalty : Facts. Web. 20 Apr. 2012. . "Death Penalty : Innocence and the Death Penalty." Death Penalty : Innocence and the Death Penalty. Web. 20 Apr. 2012. . "Death Penalty : Racial Disparities." Death Penalty : Racial Disparities. Web. 20 Apr. 2012. . "Death Penalty : The High Cost of the Death Penalty." Death Penalty : The High Cost of the Death Penalty. Web. 20 Apr. 2012. . "Death Row Inmates by State and Size of Death Row by Year." Death Penalty Information Center. Web. 25 Mar. 2012. . "Does the Death Penalty Cost Less than Life in Prison without Parole? - Death Penalty - ProCon.org." Death Penalty ProCon.org. Web. 20 Apr. 2012. . "Federal Court Overturns FDA 's Approval of Foreign Shipments of Lethal Injection Drugs." Death Penalty Information Center. Web. 30 Mar. 2012. . "How Much Does It Cost to Keep a Criminal?" |. Web. 20 Apr. 2012. . "Information on Defendants Who Were Executed Since 1976 and Designated as "Volunteers"" Death Penalty Information Center. Web. 30 Mar. 2012. . "Innocence Cases: 2004 - Present." Death Penalty Information Center. Web. 20 Apr. 2012. . "NEW RESOURCES: DEATH ROW USA Fall 2011 Now Available." Death Penalty Information Center. Web. 30 Mar. 2012. . "NEW VOICES: Former Judges and Law Enforcement Officials Criticize Death Row Inmate 's Conviction." Death Penalty Information Center. Web. 30 Mar. 2012. . "Number of Executions by State and Region Since 1976." Death Penalty Information Center. Web. 20 Apr. 2012. . "PRO DEATH." Pro Capital Punishment Page. Web. 27 Mar. 2012. . "Richard C. Dieter, MS, JD - Death Penalty - ProCon.org." Death Penalty ProCon.org. Web. 20 Apr. 2012. . "Support for Death Penalty Wanes | Amnesty International." Amnesty International. Web. 20 Apr. 2012. . "Those Executed Who Did Not Directly Kill the Victim." Death Penalty Information Center. Web. 27 Mar. 2012. . "TIME ON DEATH ROW." Death Penalty Information Center. Web. 25 Mar. 2012. . "Top 10 Pros and Cons - Death Penalty - ProCon.org." Death Penalty ProCon.org. Web. 20 Apr. 2012. . "TOWN HALL." Death Penalty: Revenge or Social Justice? Web. 20 Apr. 2012. . "Wesley Lowe - Death Penalty - ProCon.org." Death Penalty ProCon.org. Web. 20 Apr. 2012. . "William F. Buckley Jr. on Michael Ross and Capital Punishment on National Review Online." National Review Calls Home. Web. 25 Mar. 2012. . Chua-Eoan, Howard. "Crimes of the Century." Time. Time, 01 Mar. 2007. Web. 30 Mar. 2012. . Chua-Eoan, Howard. "Crimes of the Century." Time. Time, 01 Mar. 2007. Web. 30 Mar. 2012. . Chua-Eoan, Howard. "Crimes of the Century." Time. Time, 01 Mar. 2007. Web. 30 Mar. 2012. . Drehle, David Von. "Death Penalty Walking." Time. Time, 03 Jan. 2008. Web. 30 Mar. 2012. . Fitzpatrick, Laura. "The Death Penalty: Racist, Classist and Unfair." Time. Time, 23 Feb. 2010. Web. 30 Mar. 2012. . [5] (NAACP Legal Defense Fund, January 1, 2012) http://www.deathpenaltyinfo.org/documents/FactSheet.pdf [6] http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=aQDy-Ai4bw4#!
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