Consistency in the law;The Death Penalty

The United States constitution was designed to provide equal protection under the law. However, from some of the recent stories which have been publicized, it is apparent that the law lacks consistency. Consistency in the law would ultimately mean that for every particular crime of which one is convicted; they should receive the same punishment.

Our society has witnessed this inconsistency with capital punishment. Questions arise as to why certain people receive the death penalty and others just walk away with life in prison. So why the discrepancy in this course of action; it is because before anyone is sent to death the governor of each respective state would have to sign that he agrees to have the death penalty carried on. It must not be surprising that some governors do not believe in this type of punishment, inmates will, however, end up sitting on death row till they die. This can be a very long and daunting experience for the inmates whose fate is rarely unknown.

I challenge the Justice system by asking,” is this social justice under the law?” Does it mean that depending on where one commits a crime you get a better chance of not being sent to death? If so, will it elucidate why certain states have reported higher rates of crime? It is imperative for the courts to come to a consensus as to what will bring consistency within the judicial system. As the adage goes, what is good for the goose is good for the gander; therefore what a convicted felon gets in Texas for murder should be the same in New York. The sovereignty of state courts in declaring certain statutes unconstitutional has been a major factor why each state can not have similar laws.

It may be time for the United States Supreme Court to take a firm stance as to whether the country should follow other industrial nations in abolishing the death penalty or not. Even though their action may not bring contentment to each citizen, it will give to the law what it is lacking; consistency. There are a million reasons advocates of the death penalty will argue as to why it should not be abolished and in countering there are an equal number of reasons why it should be abolished. This text, however, is not debating about the controversy surrounding capital punishment. The law was designed to provide equal protection; therefore that is what the judicial system should try to uphold.

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