What is the difference between the death penalty and capital punishment?
95399
There isn't one.  Death penalty and capital punishment are synonyms.  The first two posts are wrong.  If you don't believe me, check the link below, or look it up in a dictionary.
773767
It could be argued that the Death Penalty does not prevent a person from committing treason, rape  or murder.\n\nThis is debatable.\n\nWhat is not debatable is that it prevents a miscreant from committing treason, rape of murder a second time after he is caught, tried, and found guilty.
48640
The real answer is very simple; it's because supporting the death penalty wins votes.\n\nMost active voters support the death penalty.  A politician that also supports the death penalty has an easier time getting those votes than one who doesn't.  More importantly, the US has a block of voters who consider themselves "conservatives" and who overwhelmingly support the death penalty.  A politician who opposes the death penalty will have a great deal of trouble winning his or her primary election.  Since the conservative voters are the majority of active voters in so many states, you almost always end up with at least one candidate in each final election that supports the death penalty.  And if the "liberal" candidate wants any chance of winning the final election, that candidate must take at least some conservitive positions.  \n\nBeing in favor of the death penalty is a reasonable choice for liberal politicians in conservative states, because it wins badly needed support from some conservative voters and mostly alienates those liberal voters who would never vote for the conservative opponent anyway.  This is a bit of an oversimplification, and liberal politicians at this level are skilled enough to roll death penalty support into a "tough on crime" stance so even if they alienate some of there liberal base with the death penalty support, they salvage that somewhat because even liberal voters generally like to hear that a candidate is tough on crime.\n\nThe dynamics change in the states where the liberals make up the majority.  In these states, liberal politicans have less need to support conservative causes, and the best chance a conservative candidate has to win the final election is to appear as moderate as possible.  \n\nThat's why of the 12 states without the death penalty, only 4 are "Red" states (voting for Bush in 2004) while 8 are "Blue" states (voting for Kerry).
13803
No, it does not make us a better nation ,but, if properly utilized it may create a safer nation! In reality we do not utilize capital punishment as very few convicted criminals are ever sentenced to death, and even, when sentenced to death, automatic appeals prevent the timely execution of criminals.  Therefore, capital punishment is not a deterrent.  How strange that people rally to prevent the execution of murderers but demand the right to continue killing more unborn babies. Here in the US we have "legally" sacrificed more babies, numerically, than the individuals exterminated by the Nazi regime of Adolph Hitler. Yet we dare to call ourselves a moral, civilized nation. If we decide to give capital crime offenders life imprisonment without the possibility of parole maybe we should at least require that life be given to inutero individuals, unless the life of the mother is at risk.
740297
In a capital (death penalty) case, all jurors must vote for the death penalty.  This is usually a three step process - the first step is the guilt phase.  The second phase determines whether the factors that led to the guilty verdict warrant death, and the third phase is for the jury to determine whether the defendant should be put to death, based on the findings of the first two phases.  Again, though - it must be unanimous.
674676
Yes I agree with the death penalty. Life in prison is not a punishment for long term prisoners. Three meals a day, cable TV, no bills. They think it's a good life.
564596
Each State has its own guidelines for capital punishment.\n\nBut for the Federal guidelines- there are many- some of which are not murder - although most of them are circumstances that require a death result (such as kidnapping where a death results; attack on an airline where a death results) but there are some like treason, or related to drug kingpins, etc.\n\nHere is a link- it's pretty dense- but it's all there:\n\nhttp://www.usembassy.it/pdf/other/RL30962.pdf
68751
The death penalty has existed in America since Europeans first settled here and has already been on the books since, at least at the federal level. The Supreme Court found the way capital cases were sentenced was unconstitutional, and thus between 1973 and 1976, the death penalty laws were unenforced. In 1977, the Supreme Court found a revised method of sentencing to pass muster, and thus they were allowed to resume, but there was no law passed, per se, that made it resume.
158902
Once a murderer is executed, they WILL NEVER hurt anyone ever again. No possibility of escape.  The death penalty give the victim's family peace of mind.  It's hard to think that the murderer is still alive when your loved one is dead because of that monster.
648688
Well, the person punished won't do it again.\n\nSeriously, capital punishment doesn't work as a deterrent for the simple reason of politics.  When a person is sentenced for capital punishment, there are endless appeals, retrials and whatnot to delay the punishment. On average, a person on death row will more likely have their sentence converted to "life imprisonment" then be executed. Added is that the prisoner is kept warm, dry, fed and clothed at taxpayer expense.  So, if someone was contemplating a capital crime, they're looking at two options...\n\n1) They get away with it.\n2) They get caught, and spend the rest of their life no longer in the rat race of daily society for food, clothing and shelter.\n\nWhat's the deterrent? \n\nIf the government wants capital punishment to work as a deterrent, they need to be decisive and carry out the sentence as soon as it is proven beyond reasonable doubt of innocence.  If you know the person is guilty, why let them linger on for years?  If they're guilty (either admitted it or similar), get it over with.  Then capital punishment will have teeth again.
743440
The death penalty, becase you wont have to suffer in jail for the rest of your life.
260763
On average in the US, since capital punishment was reinstated, inmates stay on death row 11.72 years. The current inmate population has been on death row an average of 12.83 years.
851237
Murder is murder is murder. It is up to us to control our anger. The only possible excuse to take a human life, aside from Capital Punishment, is in self defence and during a war.
516696
well, i don't like to think that we have the right to take a human life.....on the other hand, my cousin was murdered and her assassin got 7 years.  He should have died.  After all he took her life.  Our prison system does not rehabilitate nor can it simply because the people inside are sociopaths.  so yeah, I'm for the death penalty and lethal injection is probably the least messy choice.
956193
Many states have the death penalty. The problem is the sentences aren't carried out enough.
435811
Advantage - if prosecutors purposefully or accidentally made a mistake, they can release the guy from jail.  They can't, however, un-dead him.\n\nAdvantage - Imposing a life sentence is cheaper (even counting the cost of incarceration) than imposing the death sentence.\n\nAdvantage - If you don't execute the person, you don't have to turn someone on the state payroll into a murderer.\n\nAdvantage - Life inmates can work.  Death row inmates are not allowed to work.
418025
Capital Murder is a legal definition, meaning punishable by the death penalty.  It varies state to state, but usually requires mitigating factors.  Just shooting someone doesn't always do it.  You have to shoot someone while commiting another felony (ie robbing a bank or post office) or multiple murders.  Each state has different laws, but Capital murder means you are eligable for death.