It is a commonly held belief that the death penalty is a good deterrent to prevent heinous crimes. However, others believe that life long sentence is a better deterrent. Discuss both views.

It is very clear that, every criminal should be punished, but there is a lot of debate on the method or quantum of punishment. Some people believe that, in order to prevent heinous crimes like rape and murder, criminals should be given the

death

penalty

, but others argue, it should be a

life

long

sentence

. In

this

essay, I will explore both sides of the argument with suitable examples.

Firstly

, those who support the

death

penalty

as a mode of punishment believe that, it will instill fear into the minds of criminals.

For example

, in countries like Saudi Arabia that endorses capital punishment for serious crimes, have seen a drastic decrease in rape incidents.

Moreover

, a

death

penalty

will save taxpayers money, which will

otherwise

be utilized for the safe keeping of the criminal in jail.

On the other hand

, some people argue that, the Government or any other agencies do not have the right to take the

life

of a person.

Therefore

the only viable option is to go for

life

long

sentence

.

For example

, in many Scandinavian countries, capital punishments are completely abolished, since they believe it's not in their power to take another man's

life

.

Moreover

, a

life

sentence

will give the criminal a chance to deliberate the bad choices, and he/she could become a reformed person. To conclude, the debate over

death

penalty

versus

life

sentence

will remain one of the controversial topics. There are pros and cons to both sides of the story, and the decision to go with one of these punishments will depend on the belief system of a country.