History of Capital Punishment in the US

According to Bohm (12) the rules followed varied from one country to another with serious crimes including witchcraft, stealing food, engaging in business transactions with the Indians, were all punishable by death. Many colonies viewed the method as a deterrent. Only the intervention of John Howard, Voltaire, English Quakers would the exercise be put on hold. Towards the mid-1700, the action or movement gained fame and momentum. In the year 1764, Cesare Beccaria produced the “On Crimes and Punishment. For example, in 1838, Tennessee and Alabama ratified the death penalty statutes with circumstances surrounding the crime taken into consideration. New methods were later developed such as the electric chair while other states dwindled with the idea of abolishing the act altogether. The 20th Century The 20th century is best known as the period of progressive reforms in which six states did away with the penalty.

Three other states limited it to first-degree murder and treason. However, the reforms were short lived. The Supreme Court was forced to adjust numerous rulings of the penalty that were administered. Many of the cases brought before the Supreme Court concentrated on the discretion and role of the jury, reservations, recommendations, and impartiality to the sentence. Sentence Suspended and later Reinstated Furman v. Georgia of 1972 set up numerous references to later cases for many years in the country (Hemenway 57). In response to the many cases brought forth, the highest court voided many death penalties thus altering over 600 inmates on death row subsequently suspending their sentence. legal bodies is the execution of those who claim innocence. Numerous states have restricted offenses that may require the death penalty.