Starter: Death penalty Quiz‌ 1. How many countries in the world still retain and use the death penalty? 2. How many countries in the world have abolished the death penalty since 1990? 3. After abolishing it, how many countries have subsequently reintroduced the death penalty?
4. How many people were legally executed in 2002? 5. 81% of these executions took place in: 6. Which country has carried out the greatest number of known executions against child offenders? 7. What effect does abolition of the death penalty have on crime rates?
1. a) 10
b) 109
c) 78
2. a) none b) 35
c) 10
3. a) 1
c) 4
b) 3
4. a) less than 100 b) 500-1000 c) over 1,500 5. a) 3 b) 1 c) 10 6. a) USA b) China c) Saudi Arabia 7. a) a rise in crime rates b) a fall in crime rates c) no change
Starter: Death penalty Quiz‌ 1. How many countries in the world still retain and use the death penalty? 2. How many countries in the world have abolished the death penalty since 1990? 3. After abolishing it, how many countries have subsequently reintroduced the death penalty?
4. How many people were legally executed in 2002? 5. 81% of these executions took place in: 6. Which country has carried out the greatest number of known executions against child offenders? 7. What effect does abolition of the death penalty have on crime rates?
1. c) 78 – over ½ the countries in the world 2.
b) 35
3. c) 4 (Nepal, the Philippines, Gambia & Papua New Guinea) 4. 5. 6. 7.
c) over 1,500 (a further 3,248 were sentenced to death) In some countries there has been little change. In Canada, a) 3 (China, Iran &homicide USA) rates were at an all-time high the year before abolition; a) USA (19) since abolition they have continued to b) a fall inThere crime rates decrease. is no evidence for an c) no change increase in crime in any country as a result of abolishing the death penalty.
Key words: Capital punishment / abolitionist / clemency
How has punishment changed since 1900? – the abolition of capital punishment LO’s: • To identify reasons why capital punishment was abolished in Britain • To assess the impact of the abolition of capital punishment
The abolition of capital punishment • Throughout history the ultimate punishment has always been the death penalty. • In 1965 the UK parliament voted to abolish the death penalty for a five-year experiment. In 1969 they made the abolishment permanent. • However, in just under 50% of countries the death penalty is still legal, including in America.
Watch the clip which illustrates a short history of capital punishment in Britain since 1900.
Should capital punishment be abolished? • Stanley Tookie Williams was the leader of the Crips, a notorious American street gang, during the 60’s/70’s.
• He was convicted in 1979 of four murders during a robbery, as well as multiple murders from another case. The judge sentenced him to death. • From the beginning of his sentence, Williams maintained his innocence and alleged there was misconduct, exclusion of evidence and a biased jury selection. Watch the trailer for the film 'Redemption' a story about how he turned his life around. • Whilst on death row he was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize 6 times, and nominated for the Nobel Prize for Literature 4 times.
• With his death sentence close at hand, Williams petitioned for clemency (the right for mercy) in 2005. California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger met with Williams to help decide whether the sentence should be changed to life in prison.
Should capital punishment be abolished? Your Task: you have been employed as an agent by the Californian government to shed some light on the case from a British point of view. Should the death penalty be abolished like in Britain? Read through the case file and create a balanced report showing the impact of the abolition of capital punishment in the UK. Use case studies and evidence in your report.
Plenary: Should California abolish capital punishment like Britain? ď € Draw a continuum and add your opinion with an explanation. ď € Swap with someone on your table so they can add their opinion.
NO (oppose abolition)
YES (support abolition)
What actually happened? The Governor stated: “there is no reason to disturb the judicial decisions”. On 13th December 2005, Stanley Williams was executed by Lethal Injection Hours before his execution he said: “I just stand strong and continue to tell you, your audience, and the world that I am innocent and, yes, I have been a wretched person, but I have redeemed myself.”