Deck 11: Capital Punishment

Question 1

A utilitarian who wants to argue against the death penalty might be expected to say that:

A)capital punishment has a civilizing effect on society.
B)more net happiness is created in society by executing criminals than by sentencing them to life in prison without parole.
C)life in prison without parole is not a better deterrent than capital punishment.
D)more net happiness is created in society by sentencing murderers to life in prison without parole than by executing them.

Answer 1

D

Question 2

The Supreme Court has ruled that if a jury imposes the death penalty without any legal guidance,the practice would constitute:

A)a legal prerogative.
B)deserved punishment.
C)a legal precedent.
D)cruel and unusual punishment.

Answer 2

D

Question 3

A common utilitarian argument for capital punishment is that the death penalty:

A)prevents the criminal from striking again.
B)reduces the severity of crimes.
C)makes the general public feel safe.
D)is endorsed by all religions.

Answer 3

A

Question 4

Many retentionists believe that:

A)the sole reason we should punish the wrongdoer is because he does not morally deserve punishment.
B)the sole reason we should punish the wrongdoer is because the majority of citizens favor punishment.
C)the sole reason we should punish the wrongdoer is because he morally deserves punishment.
D)no punishment is fitting for most wrongdoers.

Question 5

Lex talionis is the idea that:

A)punishment should reflect the seriousness of the crime but does not necessarily resemble the crime.
B)the punishment should match the crime in kind, that justice demands "an eye for an eye, a life for a life."
C)capital punishment is contrary to justice.
D)punishment should reflect the just character of society.

Question 6

Some argue that the death penalty could encourage violent crime instead of just deterring it,that violent criminals who know they are likely to get the death penalty may commit murder to avoid being captured.This argument is:

A)Kantian abolitionist.
B)non-utilitarian abolitionist.
C)utilitarian abolitionist.
D)utilitarian retentionist.

Question 7

Those who oppose capital punishment are known as:

A)retentionists.
B)recidivists.
C)capitalists.
D)abolitionists.

Question 8

For many retentionists,______ is the only justification required for lawful punishment.

A)desert
B)judicial authority
C)court petition
D)law

Question 9

A man does not plan to kill his wife and has no intention of doing so,but one night he becomes enraged at her for insulting him,and he stabs her to death.He would therefore be guilty of:

A)second-degree murder.
B)manslaughter.
C)third-degree murder.
D)first-degree murder.

Question 10

Those who want to continue the policy of capital punishment are called:

A)retainers.
B)abolitionists.
C)utilitarians.
D)retentionists.

Question 11

The view that offenders deserve to be punished,or "paid back," for their crimes and to be punished in proportion to the severity of their offenses is known as:

A)distributivism.
B)retentionism.
C)retributivism.
D)revenge.

Question 12

Suppose a friend of yours says that she's glad a murderer was recently sentenced to the gas chamber,because murderers deserve to die.Her comment implies that she accepts the ______ theory of punishment.

A)utilitarian
B)egoistic
C)retributive
D)abolitionist

Question 13

Suppose the state of Ohio wanted to execute a boy who was fifteen when he murdered his parents.According to the Supreme Court,such an execution would be:

A)constitutional.
B)subject to review.
C)unconstitutional.
D)unprecedented.

Question 14

Suppose there is strong scientific evidence showing that the execution of criminals deters serious criminal behavior better than lesser punishments such as imprisonment.This data would suggest that the deterrence argument is:

A)weak.
B)strong.
C)irrelevant.
D)logically sound.

Question 15

Suppose,as retentionists claim,the death penalty is recognized by would-be criminals as a more severe punishment than life in prison.Would it then follow that the death penalty deters murderers better than life in prison does?

A)perhaps
B)yes, but only marginally so
C)yes
D)no

Question 16

Suppose a utilitarian abolitionist argues that the death penalty is too costly to implement in a democratic society.A plausible nonconsequentialist reply is that:

A)the death penalty is indeed too costly and should be abolished.
B)if the death penalty is a just punishment, then the costs involved don't matter.
C)justice doesn't matter; only cost does.
D)more net happiness is created by getting rid of the death penalty.

Question 17

A man plans to kill his wife,waits for the right opportunity,and does the deed.He would therefore be guilty of:

A)second-degree murder.
B)manslaughter.
C)killing under duress.
D)first-degree murder.

Question 18

Consider these two premises in a well-known argument: (1)everyone has a right to life (a basic moral principle),even hardened criminals; (2)the death penalty is a violation of this right.The conclusion to this argument is:

A)executing criminals is wrong.
B)executing criminals is permissible.
C)executing criminals is costly.
D)executing criminals generates less happiness than life in prison.

Question 19

The deliberate and authorized causing of pain or harm to someone thought to have broken a law is known as:

A)vigilantism.
B)punishment.
C)legalism.
D)attributivism.

Question 20

Punishment by execution of someone officially judged to have committed a serious crime is called:

A)corporeal punishment.
B)capital punishment.
C)judicial punishment.
D)serious punishment.

Question 21

Underpinning many retributive views of capital punishment is a Kantian emphasis on:

A)consequences.
B)utility.
C)respect for persons.
D)abolition.

Question 22

The issue of forgiving a criminal (for example,commuting a death sentence to life in prison)forces us to confront a contradiction between mercy (giving someone a break)and:

A)justice (giving someone what he deserves).
B)utility (giving someone what will make him happy).
C)love (giving someone unconditional acceptance).
D)fallibility (the tendency to err).

Question 23

The central legal issue in the Clarence E.Hill case is:

A)the constitutionality of lethal injection in cases where the propriety of lethal injection is questioned.
B)what recourse there should be for a prisoner who finds out that the method to be used to execute him might be cruel and unusual punishment.
C)whether capital punishment is a just punishment.
D)whether capital punishment can be justified morally.

Question 24

Consider this assertion,common in debates on capital punishment: the unjust administration of a punishment does not entail the injustice of the punishment itself.This view is most likely espoused by:

A)abolitionists.
B)utilitarians.
C)retentionists.
D)natural law theorists.

Question 25

Delma Banks Jr.may not have received a fair trial because of poor representation.If so,the injustice in the conduct of the trial would:

A)show that capital punishment was also unjust.
B)be irrelevant to the justice or injustice of capital punishment.
C)be relevant to the injustice of capital punishment.
D)be strong evidence against the death penalty.