Chapter Fifteen

Punishment and the Death Penalty

The Nature of Legal Punishment
Legal punishment: must follow legal rules
Deterrence vs. retribution
The retributivist argument:
◦ Egalitarian vs. proportional equivalency
◦ Problematic aspects
Punishment and Responsibility
Question of responsibility for a crime
Insanity defense
Free will
Prisons
Statistics
Race
Restoration and rehabilitation
◦ Restorative justice
The Death Penalty
Legal issues
Exonerations
Racial bias and fairness
Costs
Deterrence considerations
On retributivist grounds
Mercy and restorative justice
Humane executions