Capital Punishment in America A Balanced Examination

This revised and updated Second Edition is an innovative, balanced, and comprehensive overview of capital punishment. It offers an unbiased examination of the death penalty, supported by statistics and Supreme Court cases, and followed by pro and con discussions. Designed for the undergraduate and graduate level courses on the death penalty and capital punishment, and even ethics and law, this text challenges students to evaluate their beliefs and assumptions on each of the various isssues surrouding this controversial subject. Each chapter begins with a primer of the issue to be discussed, followed by the data and critical documents necessary to make an educated assessment, and concludes with essays that offer differing viewpoints by some of the best minds in the country.

Part1 Moral Considerations
Chapter1 Retribution
Chapter2 Religion
Chapter3 Deterrence
Chapter4 Brutalization
Chapter5 Incapacitation
Chapter6 Cost
Chapter7 Innocence
Part2 Constitutional Considerations
Chapter8 Arbitrariness
Chapter9 Mitigating Evidence
Chapter10 Rape and Proportionality
Chapter11 Felony-Murder
Chapter12 Juveniles
Chapter13 The Mentally Retarded
Chapter14 The Insane
Chapter15 Race
Chapter16 Victim Impact Evidence
Chapter17 Capital Juries
Chapter18 Sentencing Alternatives
Chapter19 Trial Counsel
Chapter20 Habeas Corpus and the Role of Innocence
Part3 Issues of Application
Chapter21 Appellate Delay
Chapter22 Methods of Execution
Chapter23 Televised Executions
Chapter24 Clemency
Chapter25 The Moratorium Movement
Chapter26 International Law and American Exceptionalism
Chapter27 The Future of the Death Penalty