The Dark Side of America: The Death Penalty in the USA

The death penalty is one of the oldest punishments for a crime committed by a person. This is the most severe punishment, which not only takes away life from the person who committed the gravest crime, but also causes incredible suffering for his relatives and friends.

To date, most countries have waived this penalty. International law prohibits the use of the death penalty. This is due to the fact that the main principle of respect for human rights and freedoms is the absolute right to life.

Despite everything, the death penalty in the US is still being applied. In addition, America is one of the five leading countries in the world in which the largest number of death sentences are carried out every year. This list also includes Iraq, Iran, China and Saudi Arabia.

Today, the death penalty in the US is legalized at the highest federal level and is applied in the criminal legislation of 34 states. The American legislation provides for seventy categories of crimes for which this penalty is applied.

Despite the fact that the death penalty in the US is enshrined in the federal legislation of the country, its application is regulated in the criminal laws of each state separately. In some states it is not provided by law at all, in others it exists, but in practice it is not used, in the third - it is actively used. In some states, sentenced persons are given the option to choose: when and what is the death penalty. In the United States, various methods of this type of punishment are applied in different states. Some have their origins since ancient times, others have a more modern character. But they are all terrible in their own way.

So, the current types of the death penalty in the US are as follows:

1. Electric chair

This is a special device, where an electric current is passed through the body for the death of a condemned person. Theoretically, this kind of death penalty is the most painless, except in cases of equipment malfunction. It was first used in the USA in August 1890 in New York. During the 20th century it was used in 25 states. Today it is only used in 6 - Alabama, Florida, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia and Nebraska.

2. Gas chamber

The death of a condemned man occurs by the sudden release of a poisonous gas into a suicide bomber. This is one of the most cruel and inhumane types of the death penalty. After all, gas does not kill right away, and a person experiences painful suffering at the same time. To date, such a death penalty in the US is used in four states: Arizona, California, North Carolina and Mississippi. It is not used anywhere else in the world.

3. Lethal injection

It consists in the introduction into the body of a sentenced solution of a poisonous substance. It is considered the most humane of the types of death penalty. But unreasonably painful. For this reason, lethal injections are banned in several US states: Florida, Ohio, New Jersey and Missouri.

4. Shooting

Killing is achieved with the help of firearms. The condemned, as a rule, are put to the wall. Often given a choice regarding eye patches. Today in the US, the shooting is used as a spare kind only in two states - Oklahoma and Idaho.

5. Hanging

This type of death penalty exists in the US today. But it practically does not apply. Hanging in only two states is legally fixed : Washington and New Hampshire.