50 years since the abolition of the death penalty in the UK

2015 seems to be quite a banner year for anniversaries- 70 years since the death of US President Franklin D. Roosevelt ( and of course the accession of Harry S.Truman as his successor), the end of WWII and the beginning of ths subsequent Nuremburg War Crimes Tribunals( along with their lesser known Japanese counterpart the Internation Military Tribunal For the Far East or IMTFE for short), the 900th anniversary of Magna Carta, and of course the 50th annivesary(this November) of the abolition of the death penalty for murder in the United Kingdom with the "Murder(Abolition Of Death Penalty) Act of 1965"(see Wikipedia entry)Although no one could have foreseen either the NI "Troubles" or the phenomenon of violent islamic fundamentalism, it has long been a source of pride that not even these terrorist insurgencies has prompted the return of the gallows to our sceptered isle.

Anybody think as I do?

Terry

Ha! sucks for the UK

I want the death penalty available

It is good we abolished the death penalty.

Given that the only other European jurisdiction with the death penalty is currently Belarus(m and that executions take place in societies like Saudi Arabia), trust me when I say: you DO NOT want to see the return of the gallows!

Terry

In before USA vs UK.

No, we don't.

@leo-343: The same applies for your comment.

The risk of executing an innocent person cannot be eliminated; the sheer fact that an innocent person can die as a result of the death penalty defeats the purpose of the system, which is to execute those who kill innocents.

The UK's murder rate, is also at it's lowest since 30 years.

http://www.amnesty.org.uk/fifty-50-years-death-penalty-britain-uk#.VMfYUmisUbw

The UK’s murder rate is at its lowest in 30 years, despite a lack of executions. Many studies have shown that the threat of execution doesn’t prevent homicides.

Apparently, it costs more for the death penalty than life without parole according to this page. This seems less biased and makes the matter more debatable but there doesn't seem to be a clear "winner". Unless you're talking about using olden day style executions.

And, although I can make exceptions for some people, I generally disagree with the punishment.

Nope.

Nope, don't bring it back

criminals need to die

Death to shoplifters and jaywalkers!!!!!

:P

OFF WITH THEIR HEADS :D

Cool story bro.

The logic that it costs less to kill them is uneducated.

@mandarinestro: Theoretically it would cost less if there wasn't an appeals process. Though I doubt anyone would want to live in a country where you can be put to death without accessing the specifics of the trial that led to that decision.

It's pretty awful to hear how easily people are willing to take the "eye for an eye" philosophy. It's even more ridiculous when they assume that incarceration is a soft punishment.

I agree- as the murderers of Drummer Lee Rigby are finding- growing old behind bars is more of a trial than a few minutes on the gallows( or lethal injection as they use in the US)!

Terry

Fifty years is still a relatively short time. Amazing how many things have changed only in the past century.

The death penalty has its advantages whether people agree with it or not. Even if you disagree with it, there's no greater deterrent to crime than death. Sure innocents could wind up being sentenced but the same happens over giving them life in jail. Neither system is perfect however the chance of sentencing an innocent becomes less and less likely due to advances in technology and such. I did an ethics paper on the Death Penalty and I do recall it mentioning somewhere that DNA testing for ex helps eliminate the chance of the wrong person being sentenced. So yeah, there goes Frozen's argument. Besides, throwing someone in jail if they feel no remorse for their actions isn't really going to solve their crimes. Not really a punishment if it doesn't bother them over what they did

Don't forget litterers, hate those guys!

Why would people have such a one sided debate in favor of:

So handcuffs always work?

Depends on the person.

Death penalty needs to leave everywhere. No reason for it besides revenge

How high is the U.S.A's crime rate again?

Murder :D

@laflux: that's due to our war on drugs, which BA senators Rand Paul and Cory Booker are fighting

UK stop being so pretentious...

@ccraft: Excuse us for being pretentious but if you sink to the level of those who've wronged you then you are no better than them.

@impurestcheese: That's not a real apology.

@ccraft: Taking my own advice and walking away. I say let Britain be Britain and America be America and hope that both nations continue to prosper and grow

Yet again, the chances of sentencing an innocent person become less and less as technology advances. Not only that but just because someone gets the death sentence doesn't mean it'll be done immediately. It's not the first time someone's been freed on their innocence while being on death row. Having murder rates is irrelevant because it doesn't change the fact that the Death Penalty is not without advantages. I never said DNA was the most important, however it did support what I said about technology.

I'd like it to be brought back, but there's undoubtedly people that have been falsely accused & executed.

Very good,death penalties are wrong and killing a citizen is always easier than making him fit to live in society again,that's why there are death penalties.Alse,fuc*er will suffer more alive in jail.

I'm just joking friend! ^^

I agree the death penalty isn't a solution, 1 innocent man being put to death is 1 too many imo. How do you think US solve this problem? I think one of the ways would just educate people, but the news station are too busy reporting crap >_>

@ccraft: Yes American news seems to be mildly ignorent of what happens elsewhere. I assume that's what contributes to the lack of geographical knowledge outside those 50 states

I won't lose any sleep if a serial killer is sentenced to death but if I was wrongly sentenced...well, at least a life sentence can be overruled and I would one day walk free. I don't believe in any life after death so I may be a bit biased on that.

Quit responding. Nobody forces you to respond and that notification isn't going to cause you any physical harm