Many countries still use the death penalty for various offenses, with murder being the most common. Most European and Latin American countries have abolished it, while many African and Middle Eastern countries still use it. Some countries allow the death penalty for drug-related crimes, but generally only for trafficking large quantities. Juvenile offenders and mentally disabled offenders are often excluded from eligibility for the death penalty.
The death penalty, or capital punishment, has been used by many countries in one form or another throughout history. Although many countries have abolished the use of the death penalty, as of 2011, nearly 60 countries still consider capital punishment to be acceptable for death penalty offences. Which offenses are considered death penalty offenses vary by country; however, as a rule, if a country permits the use of the death penalty, murder is considered one of the death penalty offences. Some other violent crimes, terrorism and drug related crimes are also among the death penalty crimes in some countries.
Most of the countries where the death penalty still applies are in Africa and the Middle East; however, even three of the most populist countries in the world – the United States, the People’s Republic of China and India – still allow the use of the death penalty. Most European and Latin American countries have abolished the death penalty. In countries that maintain the use of the death penalty, the movement has been to change archaic methods, such as the use of gas or electrocution, for more humane methods, such as death by lethal injection.
Within countries where capital punishment is practiced, murder is the most common offense of the death penalty. In some cases, only felony or aggravated homicide qualifies for the death penalty. In the United States, for example, the use of the death penalty for minor crimes, such as rape, has been deemed unconstitutional. Aside from murder, terrorism is the second most common crime found among the death penalty crimes in many countries.
Of the nearly 60 countries that still use the death penalty, 20 of those have also allowed capital punishment as a possible sentence for drug-related crimes as of 2011. Of those countries that allow the death penalty for drug-related crimes, the vast majority is found in the Middle East or on the African continent. Mere possession of illegal drugs generally does not reach the level of a crime for which the death penalty can be imposed. In most cases, drug-related death penalty offenses are crimes involving the trafficking of large quantities of controlled illegal substances.
In most countries that maintain the use of the death penalty, there are certain categories of offenders who may not be sentenced to death. Juvenile offenders, in most countries with the death penalty, cannot receive the death penalty; however, there are countries that execute juvenile offenders, such as the People’s Republic of China and Pakistan, among others. Furthermore, offenders who are considered mentally disabled, and therefore unable to fully appreciate the seriousness of their crimes, are often excluded from eligibility for the death penalty.
Protect your devices with Threat Protection by NordVPN
