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† Eighteenth century B.C.† First established death penalty laws
† 1834 A.D.† Pennsylvania becomes the first state to move executions into correctional facilities
† 1907-1917† Nine states eliminate the death penalty for all crimes or strictly limit it.
† 1930’s† Executions reach the highest levels in American history-average 167 per year
† 1977† Oklahoma becomes the first state to adopt lethal injection
† 1986† Banning of the execution of insane persons
† 1989† Eighth Amendment does not prohibit the death penalty for crimes committed at
age sixteen or seventeen
† 2005† The United States Supreme Court ruled that the death penalty for those who had
committed crimes under 18 years of age is a cruel and unusual punishment.
History of the Death Penalty
Short DropThe prisoner usually was hung from a treeWas usually carried out in public
Suspension HangingHave hydraulic mechanisms for raising the prisoners
Standard DropDrop between 4 and 5 feetMany still died by strangulationSome were knocked unconscious
Long Drop or Measured DropDesigned to break the prisoner’s neck at a pre-determined
distanceRemoved most of the prisoner’s physical sufferingDetermined by the prisoner’s weight
Hanging
ElectrocutionFirst electric chair designed in 1888Martha Place was the first woman to die in the electric chairSecond most common method of executionUsually there are two shocks given and it lasts about 2 minutes and 10 secondsLeather belts are strapped across the prisoner and a leather face mask is put on10 electrocutions in the 21st century
December 7th 1982-first lethal injectionSteps for execution…
Strapped to a gurneyTwo catheters inserted into two veins on each
armFlushed with Heparin solution
Three different chemicals are injected into each veinSodium thiopentalPancuronium bromidePotassium chloride
Takes about 3-5 minutes for the prisoner to die
Lethal Injection
• Originally proposed by Dr. Allen McLean Hamilton• Hydrogen cyanide gas is released into the
chamber to kill the prisoner• The prisoners die from hypoxia• The effects of breathing this in are…
• Spasms• Inability to breathe • Pain and extreme anxiety• Loss of consciousness after 1-3 minutes• Death
• It takes an average of 9.3 minutes for the prisoner to die
Lethal Gas
Pros
• Lower crime levels (deterrents)
• Some people who are freed from death row are back in prison with new charges
• Lowers cost of prison population upkeep
• Murder• Mistaken convictions• Inhumane
The Debate of the Death Penalty
Cons
http://www.capitalpunishmentuk.org/hanging.html
http://www.capitalpunishmentuk.org/gascham.html
http://www.capitalpunishmentuk.org/injection.html
http://www.capitalpunishmentuk.org/chair.html
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/execution/readings/history.html
Willing, Richard. “Foes of Death Penalty Rising: Activists Gaining Unlikely Allies in…” USA Today (Feb. 1999)
Shapiro, Joseph. “The Wrong Men on Death Row.” U.S. News & World Report (Nov. 1998)
Works Cited