Debating the Death Penalty: Should America Have Capital Punishment? The Experts on Both Sides Make Their Case

by Hugo Bedau (Editor), Paul G. Cassell (Editor)

When news breaks that a convicted murderer, released from prison, has killed again, or that an innocent person has escaped the death chamber in light of new DNA evidence, arguments about capital punishment inevitably heat up. Few controversies continue to stir as much emotion as this one, and public confusion is often the result.
This volume brings together seven experts--judges, lawyers, prosecutors, and philosophers--to debate the death penalty in a spirit of open inquiry and civil discussion. Here, as the contributors present their reasons for or against capital punishment, the multiple facets of the issue are revealed in clear and thought-provoking detail. Is the death penalty a viable deterrent to future crimes? Does the imposition of lesser penalties, such as life imprisonment, truly serve justice in cases of the worst offences? Does the legal system discriminate against poor or minority defendants? Is the possibility of executing innocent persons sufficient grounds for abolition?
In confronting such questions and making their arguments, the contributors marshal an impressive array of evidence, both statistical and from their own experiences working on death penalty cases. The book also includes the text of Governor George Ryan's March 2002 speech in which he explained why he had commuted the sentences of all prisoners on Illinois's death row.
By representing the viewpoints of experts who face the vexing questions about capital punishment on a daily basis, Debating the Death Penalty makes a vital contribution to a more nuanced understanding of the moral and legal problems underlying this controversy.

Genres: Nonfiction, Politics, Law, Philosophy, Crime

242 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2004

About the author

Hugo Adam Bedau was the Austin B. Fletcher Professor of Philosophy, Emeritus, at Tufts University, and is best known for his work on capital punishment. He has been called a "leading anti-death-penalty scholar" by Stuart Taylor Jr., who has quoted Bedau as saying "I'll let the criminal justice system execute all the McVeighs they can capture, provided they'd sentence to prison all the people who are not like Timothy McVeigh."

Reviews

[Cate Meredith · Rating 2 out of 5]

At the point where one person stated embezzlement from banks should be worthy of the death penalty, I lost faith in the other opinions of the book. I believe that is why I simply didn't enjoy it as much as I might have.

[Cara Lynn · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5/5

[Eric Parsons · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great book to see both sides of the argument...sort of. Most of the pro-capital punishment arguments are not solidly backed up and are more founded on personal feelings than anything. For example, the first "pro" argument was from an appeals judge that basically said "it's legal, so we should do it." The second argued for expanding the death penalty to include embezzlement and failed to distance it from the "vengeance" argument. Life imprisonment still removes the person from society without spilling more blood, but I digress.

The abolitionist arguments, particularly from Bryan Stevenson, carry the most weight. Stevenson, a renowned EJI attorney in Alabama, argues correctly that we do not rape somebody to punish rape, nor do we torture the torturer...why must we kill the killer? Further, the arguments from false imprisonment, racism, and other poor practices in our judicial system--plus the knowledge that we have executed the innocent--makes the argument more appealing.

The book is relatively brief and more a survey, but one worth reading.

[Sofia Thompson · Rating 2 out of 5]

A bit of a random read but was downloaded on a borrowed kindle so I decided to give it a read. Thought this would shake my POV more than it did - instead I’m more resolved than ever. Always good to read things that try to challenge your beliefs though. Incredibly cool to learn about the work early northwestern journalism students have done to prove multiple innocents

[Judy Tarver · Rating 4 out of 5]

For anyone wanting to know more about the pros and cons of the death penalty this is a book that explores both sides and has good information and researched well.

[Landon · Rating 3 out of 5]

A collection of arguments regarding capital punishment in America. Debating the Death Penalty has 8 sections, each written by a different expert (Attorneys, Judges, and Philosophers) 4 who are in favor of the death penalty, 5 against. It's really interesting, and shows pretty clearly that their are strong arguments to be made in both directions. Some arguments are stronger and better written than others. In my opinion, the strongest and most interesting is written by Judge Alex Kozinki, Chief Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit while the weakest is by Dr. Louis Pojman, a philosopher and professor. Both of those sections are for the death penalty. Lots of interesting facts throughout the book.The strongest and most interesting against is probably the one written by Bryan Stevenson, a practicing lawyer and law professor.

[Abby · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reading this for a class on the death penalty. I have always thought that I had a strong opinion on one side. This book has not only opened me up to a different side with strong arguments but has muddied the waters on what constitutes punishment. I recommend for anyone that can stomach a good debate on an imperfect topic.

[Catherine Siemann · Rating 4 out of 5]

Used as a resource for teaching; useful, well-framed articles.

[Chaunceton Bird · Rating 4 out of 5]

The cases for and against the death penalty are thoroughly and persuasively presented from intelligent minds from different areas of the law and academia in this timely book. Certainly worth the read for anybody interested in the topic. Along with ample discussion of policy, the authors use stories throughout the book to illustrate their point, and the stories are worth the read alone. If anything this book will provide ample fodder for conversation at your next dinner party.