Restoring Capital Punishment in the United Kingdom Essay

Restoring Capital Punishment in the United Kingdom - Essay Example In certain countries that retain capital punishment, the delay between the actual verdict given and the execution carried out could go for many years as the convicted person would be allowed to go through many tribunals although excessive delay can also lead to basic human rights violation3. Most prisoners appeal against the death sentence due to the survival instinct although such a struggle may itself be a basic human rights violation that would prohibit cruelty in any form4. The death row phenomenon as this is called could pressurize states to modify their procedures or even abandon capital punishment. Supporters of capital punishment argue that such form of punishment would deter crime and would be an appropriate punishment for murder. As Murray notes, a major justification for capital punishment is the perceived public support although the complexity of the death penalty may not be generally understood by most people5. Murray aimed to examine the stability of the attitudes on the fair application of the death penalty and what are the public opinions regarding the fairness and administration of capital punishment. The complexity of these attitudes was analyzed with a telephone survey and the results indicated instability in attitudes regarding the application of capital punishment although many seem to think that the application of the death penalty is not fair in many cases. Murray concluded his study by suggesting that, 'the justification for capital punishment may rest on oversimplified conceptions of attitudes toward the death penalty and its application'6.