Capital punishment, the death penalty, or execution is the sentence of death upon a person by the state as a punishment for a crime. Crimes that can result in a death penalty are known as capital crimes or capital offences. The term capital originates from the Latin capitalis, literally “regarding the head”. Hence a capital crime was originally one punished by severing the head from the body.

People are punished in various ways, some of which I could find about:

1.       Lethal Injection – Procedure: State statutes typically provide: “The punishment of death must be inflicted by continuous, intravenous administration of a lethal quantity of an ultrashort-acting barbiturate in combination with a chemical paralytic agent until death is pronounced by a licensed physician according to accepted standards of medical practice.” The execution protocol for most jurisdictions authorizes the use of a combination of three drugs. The first, sodium thiopental or sodium pentothal, is a barbiturate that renders the prisoner unconscious. The second, pancuronium bromide, is a muscle relaxant that paralyzes the diaphragm and lungs. The third, potassium chloride, causes cardiac arrest. Each chemical is lethal in the amounts administered. The inmate is escorted into the execution chamber and is strapped onto a gurney with ankle and wrist restraints. The inmate is connected to a cardiac monitor which is connected to a printer outside the execution chamber. An IV is started in two usable veins, one in each arm, and a flow of normal saline solution is administered at a slow rate. One line is held in reserve in case of a blockage or malfunction in the other. At the warden’s signal, 5.0 grams of sodium pentothal (in 20 cc of diluent) is administered, then the line is flushed with sterile normal saline solution. This is followed by 50 cc of pancuronium bromide, a saline flush, and finally, 50 cc of potassium chloride. (See California Execution Procedures). The most common problem encountered is collapsing veins and the inability to properly insert the IV. Some states allow for a Thorazine or sedative injection to facilitate IV insertion.

History: Lethal injection had first been proposed as a means of execution in 1888 when New York considered it, but ultimately opted for electrocution. In 1977, Oklahoma became the first state to adopt lethal injection. Texas performed the first execution by lethal injection in 1982 with the execution of Charlie Brooks.

Current Application: 16 states and the federal government authorize lethal injection as the sole method of execution. 20 other states provide for lethal injection as the primary method of execution, but provide alternative methods depending upon the choice of the inmate, the date of the execution or sentence, or the possibility of the method being held unconstitutional. As of April 1, 2008, 929 (85%) of 1,099 executions performed since 1976 have been by lethal injection, including 443 of the last 448 executions.

2.       Hanging –  Hanging is the lethal suspension of a person by a ligature. The Oxford English Dictionary states that hanging in this sense is “specifically to put to death by suspension by the neck”, though it formerly also referred to crucifixion and death by impalement in which the body would remain “hanging”. Hanging oneself describes a method of suicide in which a person applies a ligature to the neck and brings about unconsciousness and then death, by means of partial suspension or partial weight-bearing on the ligature. This method has been most often used in prisons or other institutions, where full suspension support is difficult to devise. The earliest known use of the word in this sense was in A.D. 1300.

3.       Electrocution – Execution by electrocution, usually performed using an electric chair, is an execution method originating in the United States in which the condemned person is strapped to a specially built wooden chair and electrocuted through electrodes placed on the body. This execution method was created by employees of Thomas Edison, and has been used only in the United States and, for a period of several decades, in the Philippines (its first use there in 1924 under American occupation, last in 1976).

4.        Gas Chamber — Survival time: 8-10 minutes
This execution method was introduced in the USA in the twenties, inspired by the use of poisonous gas during the World War One and of the oven as a suicide method.
The prisoner is tied to a chair in an airtight room. A stethoscope put on his thorax is connected to headphones which are in the adjoining room, where the witnesses are sitting, so that a doctor is able to check the continuation of the execution; in the airtight room, cyanide is released and the sentenced dies by asphyxiation: cyanide forbids the action of the respiratory enzymes which transfer oxygen from blood to body cells. The state of unconsciousness can arise quickly, but the execution will last longer if the prisoner tries to protract his life by holding his breath or breathing slowly. As it happens with other execution methods, vital organs can keep on working for a short time, whether the prisoner is conscious or not.

5.       Firing Squad — Death by firing squad, an archaic way of carrying out the death penalty that is now banned in the United States (for most prisoners, that is), was the form of execution chosen by convicted Utah criminal Ronnie Lee Gardner. A method of carrying out the death penalty that began in Utah’s pioneer days, death by firing squad was finally banned in 2004, and the state switched to lethal injection. But because the ban is not retroactive, prisoners who chose this form of death prior to the ruling are still entitled to it. Gardner requested that he be killed by a firing squad at his sentencing hearing in 1985, simply telling the judge, “I would like the firing squad, please.” His execution was carried out on the morning of June 18.

6.       Decapitation — Decapitation (from Latin, caput, capitis, meaning head) is the separation of the head from the body. Beheading typically refers to the act of intentional decapitation, e.g., as a means of murder or execution; it may be accomplished, for example, with an axe, sword, knife, wire, or by other more sophisticated means such as a guillotine. Ritualistic decapitation after execution by some other means, sometimes followed by public display of the severed head, has also been common throughout history. An executioner carrying out decapitations is called a headsman.

Here’s one account:

7.       Crossfire— This is similar to the firing squad. Here, the convicted is made to stand in the center of a field, and there are six sharpshooters surrounding it. The criminal is handed a gun and all the shooters shoot continuously at the same time. There’s one word for it – instant death!

Now I will let you know about some interesting facts about capital punishments.

1)      Executions are carried out at staggering cost to taxpayers.
It costs far more to execute a person than to keep him or her in prison for life

2)      2) There is no credible evidence that capital punishment deters crime.
Scientific studies have consistently failed to demonstrate that executions deter people from committing crime anymore than long prison sentences.

3)      3) Innocent people have been convicted and executed.
The wrongful execution of an innocent person is an injustice that can never be rectified

4)      4) Race plays a role in determining who lives and who dies.
The race of the victim and the race of the defendant in capital cases are major factors in determining who is sentenced to die in this country.

5)      5) The death penalty is applied at random.
Politics, quality of legal counsel and the jurisdiction where a crime is committed are more often the determining factors in a death penalty case than the facts of the crime itself

6)      6) Capital punishment goes against almost every religion.
Although isolated passages of religious scripture have been quoted in support of the death penalty, almost all religious groups in the United States regard executions as immoral.

7)      The USA is keeping company with notorious human rights abusers.
The vast majority of countries in Western Europe, North America and South America — more than 139 nations worldwide — have abandoned capital punishment in law or in practice.

8)      Millions currently spent on the death penalty could be used to assist the families of murder victims.
Many family members who have lost love ones to murder feel that the death penalty will not heal their wounds nor will it end their pain; the extended process prior to executions can prolong the agony experienced by the family.

9)      9) Bad Lawyers are a Persistent Problem in Capital Cases
Perhaps the most important factor in determining whether a defendant will receive the death penalty is the quality of the representation he or she is provided.

10)   10) Life Without Parole is a Sensible Alternative to the Death Penalty
In every state that retains the death penalty, jurors have the option of sentencing convicted capital murderers to life in prison without the possibility of parole.

Hope you find it useful!

Bolton’s oldest, best known pub, The Old Man & Scythe dating back to 1251. 

The name and pub sign image refer to the coat of arms of the Pilkington family, which consists of a reaper in action with said scythe. The ‘old’ was added to comment on the pub’s startling longevity, though it was rebuilt in 1630.

The pub’s greatest fame came in the English Civil War years of the mid-17th Century. Owned by the Stanley family, the pub witnessed family descendent, the 7th Earl of Derby’s forces commit an infamous massacre on the towns-people of Bolton for their Parliamentary sympathies in May 1644.

In October 1651, captured and tried for his crimes, Derby (also known as Lord Strange) was sentenced to execution by decapitation, and spent his last night alive in the pub itself, before going to his death right outside on the 15th October 1651.

The very chair he sat on is preserved in a glass case. It was used openly as a bar stool until a member of the rock group, The Who damaged it by kicking it across the room in a fit of drunken temper, after which the chair was stored away on a look but don’t touch basis.

The pub is very popular, and a romantic historic novel about the massacre and aftermath, John of God’s Sending, subtitled The Lass The Old Man & Scythe was written by Allen Clarke in 1897. A stage version was performed at Bolton Octogen in 1989.

There are actually two signs for the pub. One depicts the reaper with his scythe and the other summarizes the fate of Lord Derby. 

The pub and town stage a re-enactment of Derby’s execution every year.

Arthur Chappell

The 28 year old man was reported to be homeless, had a record of mental health issues and a police record.

A Tenerife and Canary Island website reported eyewitnesses as saying a tearful Jennifer was fearful she was being stalked.

It was then said that she entered an employment centre close by, and security guards ordered the man away.

Minutes later he slaughtered her.

There is controversy as to whether the murderer was equipped with a weapon beforehand. A regional government spokeswomen said he is understood to have obtained a knife from inside the store.

Eyewitnesses told Spanish media that they saw a man enter a Chinese market at the Valdes shopping centre and, without uttering a single word, stabbed the woman and cut off her head.

Colin Kirby, from tenerifemagazine.com witnessed the event. “It was all a bit surreal. I was heading past the commercial centre and saw a group of people by the entrance and a medical guy going in form the health centre.

“I assumed someone had fainted, walked on, and then I could hear screaming and shouting.

“I glanced behind me and a guy was ambling down the street holding what I assumed to be a joke head, by the hair.” 

He told Sky News that security guards gave the murderer chase, and eventually managed to bring him down and restrain him.

“The guy did not seem completely right to me, he was a bit dishevelled, not particularly smart and as he was walking with the head he was muttering.

“It was bizarre.”

A local a councillor for citizen security, Manuel Reveron, said: “Apparently this gentleman [was] without any motive or any reason, although for this there is no reasoning. [He] entered the shop and then cut this woman’s neck and took the head in his hand outside up to the sidewalk.

“Then the security guard was able to throw him on the ground and we covered the macabre [sight].”

Ms. Mills-Westley’s family are devastated at the dreadful news of her death. Sarah, her daughter, said in a statement, “Mum retired a number of years ago and was fully enjoying her retirement travelling between Tenerife and France where she spent time visiting her daughter and grandchildren, and her other daughter in Norfolk.

“She was full of life, generous of heart, would do anything for anyone.

“We now have to find a way of living without her love and light and we would ask at this difficult time for some privacy as we try to come to terms with our loss.”

Jennifer Mills-Westley originally lived in Norwich, Norfolk, retired from her job as a road safety officer and left Britain to enjoy her freedom.

Norfolk County Council issued a kind statement praising her warm character.

“Jenny was a popular and well respected member of staff, who during her time with Norfolk County Council worked as a road safety officer working with many schools and children to teach cycling safety training and make Norfolk’s roads safer,” it said.

We just hope that the Mills-Westley gets justice for the unjust murder of their well-loved mother and grandmother.

2.It is against the law in Victoria, Australia to wear pink hot pants after noon on Sundays. This one really stumped me as to why this was made into a law I do not know.

3.It is against the law in England for a cab to carry a rabid dog or a corpse. Go figure. This is self explanatory, who would pay the cab fare?

4.Anyone that goes to the House of Parliament in England should have a checkup first. It is against the law to die there. If you do I guess you wouldn’t have to worry about being arrested.

5.If your posting a letter from England you better make sure the stamp of the Queen is the right side up. It’s against the law to place a postage stamp of the Queen upside down.

6.Anyone that lives in France and owns a pig better not name him Napoleon. It’s against the law. I guess if you’re pushed to it you could always call him Nap for short.

7.This law is precious. In the UK it is within the law to tell the tax collector what you don’t mind him knowing but against the law to withhold information you don’t want him to know. It seems they have you coming and going. This law was still used in 2006.

8.If you’re ever in Alabama don’t try to drive your car blind folded, as if you would.

9.Do you fish much? If you’re fishing in Ohio it is against the law to get a fish drunk. So you better take a fishing buddy if you want someone to drink with!

10.Naval ships pretty much have to carry rum onboard as it is the law when they enter the Port of London to provide a barrel of rum to the Constable of the Tower of London. This man must have a Hugh stock of rum or he doesn’t have to buy any to celebrate.

11.Here’s one for the books. A pregnant woman in the UK can relieve herself any place she wants even in a policeman’s hat. Can you imagine walking up to a policeman and saying “may I borrow your hat?”

12.If you have a dog and happen to be in Lancashire on the beach and the dog starts barking you have to shut him up NOW if asked by a policeman. It’s the law!

13.Here’s one that really makes sense. You are not allowed to skateboard in a police station in Miami, Florida. As if you would!

14.It has been said that if you masturbate “you will go blind” but in Indonesia it is against the law with the penalty being decapitated. Not much need for glasses here either way I guess.

15.This is still in the law books in the UK that any male over the age of 14 must practice two hours of longbow practice a day. I say get out of town!

16.A law in London permits a Freeman to take his sheep across London Bridge for free, no bridge toll here. They can also drive Geese down Cheapside. Looks like either way their saving money.

17.San Salvador seems to go a bit to the extreme with drunk drivers. They not only lose their license they lose their lives before a firing squad! It’s the Law.

18.If you’re a male in the UK and get short taken in public you can only relieve yourself if you aim at the rear tire and have one hand on your vehicle. This could be a problem for anyone needing two hands.

19.Florida has another quirky law that woman can’t parachute on Sundays if they do they can be arrested.

20.Now hers a winner in Kentucky it is against the law to carry a concealed weapon more than six feet long. Makes no sense to me either!

21.If your visiting Chester you better be aware that Welshman are not allowed into the city before dawn and has to leave before sunset.

22.New York has a quirky law that says you can kill a Scotsman within the ancient city walls but only if he’s carrying a bow and arrow. Don’t leave home without it!

23.In Boulder Colorado you can’t kill a bird in the city limits. So if your there be very careful what you do to the birds.

24.Vermont has a law that brings a smile to my face and that is woman can’t wear false teeth without their husbands permission.

25.If you’re in London and happen to have the plague forget about taking a taxi to the doctors the law states you’re not allowed to flag one down.

26.A Bahrain law states that a doctor can’t examine a woman’s genitals by directly looking at them, he must use a mirror. I wonder if my doctor would go for that.

27.If you notice the head of a whale on a beach on the British Coast, don’t touch it. This is the property of the King. If the full whale is there the tail belongs to the Queen in case she needs the bones for her corset.

28.If you’re going to Eureka, Nevada USA and have a moustache you better get it shaven. It is illegal to kiss a woman if you don’t. Oh what we have to do for love!

29.I like this one! If you live in Alexandria and have garlic, onion or sardines smell on your breath it is against the law to have sex with your wife. Get the mouth wash out!

30.Another law I like is if you live in Logan County, Colorado, USA it is against the law to kiss your wife if she’s sleeping. So stand at the bottom of the bed and yell!

So there you have it some of the worlds quirkiest laws. How many of them are true I don’t know but it is a riot seeing that some of them could be. Some laws that were written over time just never got changed. I have more but you’ll have to wait for the next article for them.

The death penalty for criminals and political opponents was used in almost all societies. Other than crime the death penalty was also used to get rid of political dissent. These days, countries that use the death penalty use it only for major crimes such as murder, spying, treason, or drug trafficking. It is also used for military justice. In some countries sexual crimes, such as rape, adultery, etc also lead to the death penalty. Religious crimes such as apostasy, can also lead to execution.

History

The use of the death penalty dates back to the beginning of recorded history. The death penalty was a part of the justice system. However, in those days crimes were rare in the small communities. Crimes such as murder were almost always crimes of passion. People would hesitate to murder another person. For this reason, execution and even banishment were rare. Compensation and shunning were enough as a punishment. However, outsiders were treated more harshly. Even there small crimes were severely punished. The punishments varied from beatings and enslavements to executions.

For most of history, capital punishments were often cruel and inhumane. These punishments included boiling to death, whipping, slicing, impalement, crushing, disembowelment, the cross, stoning, burning, sawing, decapitation, neck lacing etc. Trends began in the 18th century to move to more humane death penalties. France developed the guillotine, which would simply cut the head off. Hanging was developed, where the criminal would have as thick rope tied around the neck and would be dropped a longer distance.

In 1976, capital punishment was removed from the Criminal Code of Canada as a punishment. After many years of debate and controversy, the parliament decided that capital punishment was not an appropriate punishment. The reasons for this were the possibility of wrongful convictions, accusations that the state was taking the lives of people, and there was also uncertainty as to whether the death penalty was effective. The Parliament replaced the death penalty for murder with a life sentence in jail, with no possibility of parole after 25 years, in case of first-degree murder, and between 10-25 years for second-degree murder.

The only method of execution in Canada, before 1976, was hanging. In 1859, offences punishable by death in Canada included: murder, rape, treason, administering poison or wounding with intent to commit murder, abusing a girl under ten, buggery with man or beast, burglary with assault, arson, casting away a ship, and giving a false signal endangering a ship. This was changed to three by 1859: murder, rape, and treason.

Pros and Cons

There are many pros and cons for capital punishment. The pros of capital punishment seem to be reasonable. The cost of keeping a person in prison for life is more expensive than executing the same person. Another pro is that since the criminals that receive capital punishment are violent then it would be better for the society if those criminals were executed, that way it would not impose any danger to the police as well. Another pro is that many people believe that the punishment of a crime should equal the crime, also known as “eye for an eye”. Therefore the person that kills should also be killed.

The cons of capital punishment are just as reasonable as the pros. A prison’s job is to rehabilitate a criminal so they can be released back to society. This means that capital punishment has no place in a prison. Another good point is that if somebody murders somebody else and the murderer’s punishment is the death penalty, than what is the difference between the murderer and the law. The murderer killed somebody and so did the law. In other words 2 wrongs do not make a right. Some cultures prefer suffering to immediate death.

Solutions

One solution is the “eye for an eye” theory, where the criminal’s punishment is the same as the crime that they committed. This solution seems reasonable because the criminal is experiencing the same pain that he/she has given others. Another solution is that a criminal who commits a capital offence shall be given life imprisonment as an alternative to capital punishment. The last solution is that they are sentenced to death.

Preferred Solutions

The solution that I believe is right is to have life imprisonment as an alternative to capital punishment. I believe that no crime deserves death as a punishment, even if the crime is murder. In fact, I believe that life imprisonment is a much more severe punishment than capital punishment. This is because if somebody is given life imprisonment than they are suffering every day of their life in prison, they will be begging for death.

Many countries use the Death Penalty as a social device to inhibit hideous crimes (following the country’s parameters of what is hideous). Although no Scientific Study demonstrates any reduction in criminal activities provoked by the presence of the Death Penalty, those countries still use that barbaric ritual. What countries are those, and which are the ways to be cruelly assassinated by the Government?

1. Fusilladed

   

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   A Fusillade Squad is positioned six meters in front of the person sentenced to the Death Penalty. Usually using rifles, the Squad fires all the weapons simultaneously at a standing or sit victim. It is a popular way to die in war crimes. Even countries that doesn’t have the Death Penalty institutionalized in their culture, opens exceptions in Wars.

   In that case, the victim is shot from multiple directions being wounded in multiple places. The condemned dies from the hemorrhage of various organs or, if the victim is lucky, a bullet reaches the brain, what means in most cases, instantaneous death. Specialists classify this pain and suffering as average. In my opinion, it is very easy to classify pain as average when you were not the one shot multiple times to death.

   The places that still use that Capital Punishment are USA, Somalia, Taiwan, Uzbekistan, Guatemala and Vietnam.

2. Stoned to Death
   

   The Death Penalty Sentence “stoned to death” is usually applied to criminals that attempted against the honor of women in Muslin countries, and tradition make the male family members of the victim and male members of the local community, the killers of the condemned to death.

   The death penalty condemned is wrapped in a sheet and thrown into a hole. The executioners stand around the hole and throw rocks on the condemned. As a ritual designed to be cruel, the death penalty “stoned to death” makes every effort to make the death long and painful. The condemned dies mostly by the rocks that smite his head.

   The places with that death penalty are: Iran, Nigeria, Pakistan and Saudi Arabia.

3. Hanged

   

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   In the death penalty “hanged”, the rope is boiled, twisted and lubricated with soap before tied around the condemned’s neck. The condemned, with the rope around his neck, wait for the trapdoor under his feet to open and hang his body to death by the neck. When the death is fast, the spine breaks in the moment that the condemned is hanged, along with the medulla, and in that case, the victim dies in less than 60 seconds.

   Specialists say that this death penalty is the most humane and least painful way to die, if the sadistic ritual of hanging is correctly executed. In cases where the executioners make the rope too long, the condemned might take more than 20 minutes to die (in that case, by choking) and the pain and suffering are maximized.

   The places that still have the hanging as a Capital Punishment are: USA, China, Guatemala and Iraq.

4. Electric Chair
   

   

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   The condemned to the death penalty “electric chair” is tied to a chair with leather stripes. His body had already been shaved to avoid flaming hair. The executioner binds electrodes wet in a saline solution on the legs and head of the condemned to death, and a metal helmet is placed over the head.

   After blindfolding the death penalty condemned, the executioner activates the chair and releases at least two discharges from 500 to 2000 volts. If the condemned survives, the executioner repeats the process until the victim dies.

   The victim’s suffering is related to the time he takes to die, varying from average to high pain. The only country that uses the Capital Punishment “electric chair” is the USA.

5. Decapitation

   

   In the Death Penalty “decapitation”, the victim is placed standing or sit, and the executioner uses a sword to cut his head off. A good executioner can provide a fast and “merciful” death with just one blow. But, if the executioner is not that professional and the victim’s vertebrae and muscles are too tight, the executioner may need more blows, what may increase exponentially the suffering.

   The death happens when the medulla is cut. In that case, the breathing and heartbeat cease immediately.

   The places that still apply the “decapitation” as a death penalty are: Saudi Arabia, China, Guatemala and Iraq.

6. Lethal Injection
   

   

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   When the death penalty condemned is tied over a bed, the executioners place two probes in the veins on his arms. One of them has an isotonic solution that will latter be replaced by poison, and the second one is a fail safe, in case of failure of the system. First, a sedative is released in the condemned’s veins. When the victim sleeps, curare (a powerful paralyzing toxin) is injected in the victim, and in the end, potassium chloride. After the potassium, the heart stops and the victim dies from 5 to 7 minutes. Specialists guarantee that the pain is minimal and that it is one of the most humane means to death penalty.

   The places that apply “lethal injection” as a death penalty are: USA, China and Guatemala.

In an overall view, the countries that execute more prisoners through death penalty are: China, Iran, Saudi Arabia, USA and Pakistan.