Pick a controversial topic Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Pick a controversial topic - Essay Example However many of these criminals are violent and have committed depraved murders without regard to their victims and their families. In these instances the death penalty may be an appropriate punishment. According to the Amnesty International website â€Å"The death penalty is the ultimate denial of human rights. It is the premeditated and cold-blooded killing of a human being by the state.† (â€Å"Abolish the Death Penalty†) The site claims that in 2011 there was an international movement toward abolishing the death penalty completely. It also has indicated aside from the United States only 20 regularly imposed the death penalty in murder cases. There are several articles found on the site which describe their efforts to ban the death penalty. For example in the article â€Å"Iran must halt executions amid fears of new wave of death penalties† it stated that Amnesty International asked Iranian authorities to put a stop to upcoming executions because many other Iranian prisoners may be at risk for execution pertaining to drug crimes without a fair trial. Amnesty International is calling for a stop to these executions until allegations of torture and other illega l practices perpetrated by Iranian authorities can be investigated. In a 2007 Washington Post article author Martin O’Malley discusses his reasons for believing that the death penalty should be abolished in his home state of Maryland. He indicates that it is not the most effective punishment for murder and does not necessarily discourage other people from committing murders. He cites the example of a case of a Maryland man who randomly shot and killed three teens. This person expressed no remorse and stated that he would do it again if he could. (O’Malley) He was eventually executed. However O’ Malley questioned whether or not the execution was appropriate retribution for the murders since the killer welcomed execution. O’ Malley also cites an example of another man who was