The death penalty has been debated by civilizations throughout history. What crimes, if any, are so heinous in nature as to justify killing another person and what system of justice can be created to prevent further killing are challenging questions.
While capital punishment has been banned throughout parts of the world, execution remains a legal option in many countries. The United States, for example, executed 1,057 people from 1977 through 2006 primarily by means of lethal injection. Those executions generally took place with popular support among Americans who …