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Kerri Uptagrafft
Mrs. Bergeron
ENC1102
The Death Penalty
Do you find it ironic that bad things always seem to happen to good people? So,
if bad things happen to good people, shouldn’t bad things happen to bad people, too?
The death penalty is a form of capital punishment, the most severe form of punishment
for a criminal. It was formed and used as a type of justice, for other people, against
people who commit cruel, unusual and heinous crimes. On January 7th, 2007 there was
a man named Cornelius Baker who was more than desperate for cash. He came up
with a plan with the help of his girlfriend, Patricia Roosa, to perform a home invasion,
which lead to a robbery, which lead to the kidnapping of my grandmother, Elizabeth
Dean Uptagrafft. Hours after she, her mother and her son were terrorized, he decided to
murder my grandmother, after he said he wouldn’t hurt her. He had already hurt her,
and I believe he intended on killing her the whole time. That hurts the most I think,
knowing she thought she had the chance to live and he just decided he was someone
with enough power to decide it was her time. He had no power, he has nothing but a
prison cell now and I have to say I am happy about that. Cornelius Baker will hopefully
never have the chance to do this to another family. After that day, the death penalty had
a more significant meaning to me, probably more so than it does people who haven’t
experienced this.
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Although I fully support the death penalty for anyone who commits a crime like
this, because I know and not only have sympathy but empathy as well. There have
been times in the last, almost eleven years that I have questioned myself and how I feel
about this because of my belief in God. There is a moral conflict and a practical conflict
there. It bothers you in a way because it is premeditated and out of a vengeance (A
Debate). I also know that the bible says that death should be done to anyone who
commits murder, rape, burglary or larceny. Capital Punishment in America is not just a
legal or political reality; it is also a religious phenomenon encompassing matters of
belief, faith, and morals (Recinella,5). Those familiar with American death penalty
practice know that religion and interpretation of scripture are surprisingly common
