Cabanas 1

Stephanie Cabanas

Professor Bruce

English 301-57

11 May 2017

Annotated Bibliography MLA

Working Title:

Death Penalty in the United States

Working Research Question:

One of the most controversial topics in the correctional system is the death penalty. Currently the

United States Government and military, along with thirty-two states have a death penalty. If the

death penalty is the only way to make sure criminals do not reoffend, then why do some still

oppose the death penalty?

Working Thesis:

The topic of the death penalty is very controversial among Americans; however a vast majority

of them choose to support it. Some of the reasons being that the death penalty is an important

tool for; preserving law and order, deterring crime, retribution to honor the victim, help console

the grieving families, and ensuring that these perpetrators never have an opportunity to commit a

crime ever again. Although those against the death penalty claim that an innocent person can be

killed.
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Introduction:

In the United States, capital punishment was influenced by European practices and has

existed since the founding of the original colonies, and was utilized for a large number of crimes

including burglary, murder, treason, counterfeiting, and arson. The Supreme Court suspended use

of the death penalty from 1968 to 1976. (Kaufman, 2016). The court eventually decided that

capital punishment does not violate the Eighth Amendments prohibition on cruel and unusual

punishments. Executions started again in 1977. Today supporters of the death penalty claim that

the death penalty ensures that perpetrators will never have an opportunity to ever commit a

crime. Supporters believe that life without parole is not a good way to ensure that a criminal

doesnt commit such crimes again, because they can kill someone in prison or escape and kill an

innocent person. Supporters also claim that the death penalty can be retribution for the victims

and the grieving families. Retribution is when a person deserves to be punished because of what

they have done an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth. Many believe that if there is no

retributive sanction then citizens might want to take law into their own hands and punish

offenders. The death penalty is how we can make sure that criminals do not have the opportunity

to commit another crime ever again.

Annotated Bibliography:
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1. "Part I: History of the Death Penalty." Part I: History of the Death Penalty | Death Penalty

Information Center. N.p., 2016. Web. 13 Mar. 2017. From

http://www.deathpenaltyinfo.org/part-i-history-death-penalty

a. This source provides a timeline and introduction of the death penalty. It gives a full

detailed background of the death penalty in the United States.

b. I plan on using this article by writing about important Supreme Court decisions

regarding the death penalty, also by giving the different forms of execution methods.

Most importantly I will use this article to write about when the death penalty was

suspended and when it was reinstated, and how this decision might have affected peoples

views on the death penalty.

2. Lynch, Mona. "Capital Punishment as Moral Imperative: Pro-Death-Penalty Discourse on the

Internet." Punishment & Society, vol. 4, no. 2, Apr. 2002, p. 213. EBSCOhost,

search.ebscohost.com.lib-proxy.fullerton.edu/login.aspx%3fdirect%3dtrue%26db%3dcja

%26AN%3d7899585%26site%3dehost-live%26scope%3dsite.

a. This source provides a broad list of pros and cons regarding the death penalty.

b. I will use this article to provide the many reasons why more people support the death

penalty. I will also use this source why people prefer that certain prisoners face the death

penalty instead of life in prison. I will use this source to explain what deterrence and

retribution are and why many find this important when making the decision to support the

death penalty. I will also use this source to explain why a victims or victims familys

opinion matters.
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3. Zimmerman, Paul R. "Statistical Variability and the Deterrent Effect of the Death Penalty."

American Law and Economics Review, vol. 11, no. 2, Fall, pp. 370-398. EBSCOhost,

doi:aler.oxfordjournals.org/content/by/year.

a. This source provides plenty of facts regarding the death penalty.

b. I will use this source to give facts about how many people have been given the death

penalty, the races of those given the death penalty, and the crimes that they committed. I

will also use this source to explain the difference in costs of someone given the death

penalty and someone who is kept in life without parole (LWOP), and how giving

someone the death penalty costs less tax payers money.

4. Kaufman, Sarah. "Here's How Many Death Row Inmates Die While Waiting to Die." The

Week - All You Need to Know about Everything That Matters. N.p., 04 Sept. 2015. Web.

12 Mar. 2017.

a. This article examines both the pros and cons of the death penalty not just the pros.

b. Although this article gives great reason why people oppose the death penalty I will

focus on the reasons why many support the death penalty. This article gives great pros

that I believe will be a critical piece in my editorial. This article focuses on how not

giving someone the death penalty can be dangerous for community safety.