Death penalty should be abolished because it defies the value of human life and the individual right of people to live that is also stated in the constitution. Therefore, supporters of capital punishment have to strongly justify their position. At the same time, there is a higher possibility of innocent people being killed for crimes they have not committed as long as human justice remains fallible. Retribution is also wrong and eliminates the chances of a person rehabilitating ( Karanja, 2018) . It also brutalizes society by increasing more retaliation from criminals and is expensive to procure. In the end, the death penalty does not deter crime. Using a forward-looking theory on utilitarianism, an action is justified by the benefits of the consequences. If an act brings total happiness, it would be considered morally right. In this case, the idea of capital punishment is that pain and other negative effects should be exceeded by its benefits such as deterrence, crime prevention, as well as incapacitation ( Karanja, 2018) . However, the death penalty does not seem to deter any crime. Despite it being a harsh punishment, it is not harsh on crime given that there is an increasing wave of criminal activities across the country.
The concept of capital punishment reveals a hidden authority where the state has the power to destroy the life that the Constitution wishes to protect. Since there are no justifiable benefits of the death penalty, it is morally wrong ( Karanja, 2018) . Alternating the idea with life imprisonment illustrates the significant importance to protect life without retribution. The society, in turn, learns the value of human life and the importance of rehabilitation while considering the possibility of there being innocent lives. Instead of making it easier for criminals to simply die, life imprisonment serves as a good measure and punishment of hardcore criminals where they live with the consequences of their actions.
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References
Karanja, W. (2018). A Case for the abolition of the death penalty (Doctoral dissertation, Strathmore University).
