The death penalty is a punishment, given by a court, to be carried out for a serious crime that has been committed. Since it is the most serious kind of punishment, it is called capital punishment (Mappes and Zembaty, 108). I do not believe this is the right verdict for the following reasons: it is inhumane punishment, fails to deter crime, kills innocent people, and the true ethical answer is found in the Holy Bible.
             The Supreme Court plays a major role in the inhumane executions of many prisoners. For example, between 1930 and 1968, 455 people were executed for rape in the United States, but in 1977 the Court decided in Coker v. Georgia that the death penalty for rape was unconstitutional (Winters, 165). This shows that the 455 people were put to death by means considered unconstitutional by the Supreme Court.
             Execution has proved to be inhumane. Centuries ago, the application of electric current was thought to be the most rapid and painless method available. The world's first electrocution took place at Auburn State Prison on August 6, 1890. Viewer reports state that after seeing the convict convulsed in the chair, smelling his burning flesh, and noticing the purplish foam spilling from his mouth, they no longer viewed execution as humane (Winters, 91-92).
             As electrocution lost favor, lethal injection has gained popularity. Lethal injection is not uncomplicated. During the execution of Raymond Landry, the syringe came out of his arm and sprayed deadly chemicals across the room toward witnesses. It took technicians fourteen minutes to reinsert the catheter into the vein (Winters, 29). Using history as a guide, lethal injection will be as sickening a hundred years from now, as the electric chair does today.
             Retentionists, in favor of the death penalty, argue that the death penalty will discourage crime (Mappes and Zembaty, 108). The punishment of death has never prevented determined men
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