The Death Penalty Before America
Throughout all of history, mankind has had strong views toward certain crimes deemed worthy of execution(1). Crimes punishable by execution vary from country to country and have changed all throughout time. Such crimes worthy of execution include murder, treason, and in some countries even adultery(2). Capital punishment has been around since the days of ancient Babylon when the Code of Hammurabi was instituted into Babylonian law by King Hammurabi, the ancient Hittite Code, Draconian Code of ancient Athens, and the Roman Law of the Twelve Tablets(3). The different forms of execution include: death by drowning, fire, impalement, crucifixion, hanging, and more. |
Death Penalty in Early America
The death penalty in America started from the time the Europeans settled in the colonies(4). Britain heavily influenced the colonists views on capital punishment, however capital punishment was loosely controlled as crimes such as denying God or striking ones parent were punishable by execution(5). This did not last for long. The first recorded execution was in 1608 when Captain George Kendall was executed in the colony of Jamestown in Virginia for being a spy for Spain(6). During the Salem witch trails of Massachusetts, innocent people were convicted and executed of witchcraft. After the American Revolution when the United States was finally established, our founding fathers heeded the need for capital punishment reform(6). Thomas Jefferson introduced a bill to the Virginia legislature that was eventually voted against that proposed capital punishment only be carried towards the crimes of murder and treason(7). Others followed the future president and by the turn of the 17th century, states defined capital punishment worthy for certain crimes such as first degree murder. The abolitionist movement then began with their efforts to abolish capital punishment(8). |
The Death penalty in the 1800s
State penitentiaries began to be built as executions were being moved publicly to secure facilities. The death penalty has since been carried out by the state and not every state has approved of it. Michigan in 1846 became the first state to abolish capital punishment except for the crime of treason(9). Many states such as southern states Tennessee and Alabama kept capital punishment. Death by firing squad and other means of execution were all implemented but capital punishment itself was still looked upon as inhumane(10). |
The Death Penalty from 1900 to today
From the start of the Progressive Era to the start of the First World War, states began abolishing capital punishment because they thought it was inhumane. Due to the Russian Revolution however, some of the abolished states began re-implementing their capital punishments(11). The country saw its all time high for executions during the 1930s as the abolitionists lost major support. After the Second World War, executions subsided until the 1970s(12). Crimes such as treason and first degree murder were deemed worthy for execution. The electric chair, gas chamber, and lethal injection are all forms of execution that came about in this century(13). The supreme court in 1971 had to make decisions on who to allow to be a juror on an execution trial due to the severity of these types of trials. Sometimes jurors were asked to not participate if they were thought to have a biased opinion(14). |