The Death Penalty Is Important for America | Opinion

In America, the death penalty has been an effective form of punishment for certain crimes since the founding of our nation. The Supreme Court ruled in the 1976 Gregg v. Georgia decision that the death penalty was constitutional because it was not found by the Court to be cruel and unusual as long as it is carried out in a manner "consistent with the evolving standards of decency that mark the progress of a maturing society."

Abolishing the death penalty today would be foolish for a number of reasons.

On June 28, 1776, Thomas Hickey was hanged in New York City. Hickey was a member of then-General George Washington's elite protection team known as the Life Guard, who have been credited as a major reason that the Continental Army won the Revolution by keeping Washington safe so that he could lead the Army to victory.

Hickey would become the first ever soldier in the Continental Army to be sentenced to death for treason, after being found guilty of participating in a conspiracy to kill or kidnap George Washington, and ultimately stop the rebellion against England. A "Secret Committee" was created to investigate the plot which led to the sentencing of Hickey and their methods would become an early version of America's modern counterintelligence operations. At the time of the hanging, Army Surgeon William Eustis, who would become Massachusetts' governor later on, said the Hickey conspiracy was "the greatest and vilest attempt ever made against our country ... the plot, the infernal plot which has been contrived by our enemies."

Four years later in 1780, British Major John André schemed together with American General Benedict Arnold to seize the West Point fortification in New York from the Continental Army. The plot was foiled when General Washington's minutemen captured André who was hanged soon after.

The death penalty has rightfully been used for heinous crimes, murder, and treason throughout our nation's history. It is not only a healthy deterrent for criminals who have to think twice before committing one of these crimes, but the death penalty also can help prevent recurring crimes.

Executions also can bring closure for victim's family members, whose lives are otherwise haunted by a living criminal serving a life sentence. Just knowing the offender is still alive can cause mental anguish for loved ones.

Take for instance Ted Bundy, a serial killer and rapist who admitted to 36 murders during the 1970s, including a 12 -year-old girl. Many believe he likely killed more than 100 victims in total. It would be astonishingly difficult to think a monster like Bundy should have lived out his life behind bars, as opposed to being executed in 1989.

With softer policies leading in many progressive states, even the most heinous of criminals, such as Charles Manson, was eligible for parole every single year since 1978 until he died in 2017, even though he masterminded horrific murders. What if someone like him were to walk free?

Just this week, a 31-year-old NYPD officer was killed by a career criminal during a routine traffic stop in Queens, leaving a wife and 1-year-old son behind. City officials have called it a senseless act of violence. Has justice become so soft that criminals are not even deterred from killing a man that simply was protecting the community?

The nation has seen a rise in violent and heinous crimes over the past few years, especially in more progressive cities, where they have implemented soft on crime policies. With no deterrence or accountability, crime inevitably begins to mount, particularly those most heinous of all. The death penalty is a useful tool for law enforcement both federally and at the state level.

State and federal governments have every right to carry out lawful executions for the right reasons. It brings a degree of closure, and acts as a necessary deterrent for others to think twice before committing crimes.

Cliff Stearns was a former Republican representative from Florida.

The views expressed in this article are the writer's own.