Faced with an expiring supply of a controversial sedative, the state of Arkansas planned to execute eight men over 11 days — a pace that is unprecedented in recent U.S. history and that has been criticized by lawyers and former corrections officials. I think the death penalty should be allowed in all of the United States. I say this because I don’t think people who have done terribly bad things should be allowed to live anymore. Most will end up staying in prison for the rest of their lives anyway, so why do that when you can get rid of them now?

There should be a cheaper and easier way to execute people though. If the cases didn’t take so long as well it would be easier to get rid of these people.  The way people should be put to death should change as well. Injecting costs too much and sometimes in the past has malfunctioned, and according to some sources, injecting is the most botched execution method. The preferred method could instead be death by firing squad or hanging. If hanging seemed inhumane or too long, the long drop version of hanging could be used which would result in a more humane and quick death.

Another problem with being put to death is racial issues. What can be done about that is no matter who you are, if you commit first degree murder, commit sexual assault, or any other capital crimes you are to be put to death.

Overall I truly believe that capital punishment should be used. It can be used to set an example and to stop holding all these prisoners for the rest of their lives, it is a waste. I don’t think the debate “capital punishment is murder” is the right way to go. They are going to die in prison anyways, there is no difference. The only problem of course is the cost and time of these cases. I believe that is the only thing that really stands in the way and if those two things were reduced in the future, the death penalty could be an effective way of getting rid of these serious crime committers. Interested in knowing the crimes these men committed?  See article below, published April 17 by foxnews.com

Don William Davis, 54
Davis has been convicted in the brutal death of Jane Daniel. Daniel was in her home when Davis broke in and shot her with a .44-caliber gun.

Jack Herold Jones, Jr., 52
Jones was initially scheduled to be put to death April 24 at 9 p.m. CDT. Jones has spent the past two decades on death row for killing Mary Phillips and trying to kill her daughter, Lacy, during a robbery at an accounting office. Phillips was found naked from the waist down with a cord from a coffee pot tied around her neck. Lacy was left for dead but woke up as police photographed her. Jones had taken Lacy to the bathroom and tied her to a chair. Lacy cried and asked Jones not to hurt her mother. Jones told the child, “I’m not. I’m going to hurt you.” He then choked her until she passed out and hit her in the head with the barrel of a BB gun. Jones has said he is “not interested in clemency and has apologized for his actions.” Jones has spent the last 20 years of his life on death row. He’s tried to commit suicide twice and allegedly has been diagnosed with anti-social disorder and is bi-polar, according to The Forgiveness Foundation. Jones began using hard drugs from an early age.

Kenneth Dewayne Williams, 38

Williams was initially scheduled to be executed on Thursday, April 27. Williams spent the last 17 years of his life on Arkansas’ death row. Williams grew up in a very violent home and was exposed to drugs, alcohol and physical abuse from an early age. He also had developmental disabilities which alienated him from his friends in school. He was convicted of murdering Cecil Boren in 1999. Three weeks after his conviction, Williams escaped by hiding in a container of hog slop being ferried from a prison kitchen to a prison hog farm outside the main gates. While in prison, Williams said he had killed another person in 1998. He gave a one-hour, 15-minute speech in front of the parole board where he accepted full responsibility for his actions.

Stacey E. Johnson, 47

Johnson was put on death row for the murder of Carol Heath in 1993. Heath was beaten and strangled and had her throat slit while her two young children were hiding in the home. Heath’s daughter, Ashley, has said she’s forgiven Johnson but wants him to admit he killed her mother. Johnson has refused and has strongly maintained his innocence.
Ledell Lee, 51
Lee is sentenced to die for the 1993 murder of Debra Reese, his neighbor. He beat Reese 36 times with a tire tool her husband had given her for protection. Lee was apprehended less than an hour after the grizzly death, trying to spend the $300 he had stolen from her. DNA evidence has also linked him to the disappearance of Christin Lewis, 22. Lee is also serving time for the rapes of a Jacksonville woman and teenager.

Marcel Williams, 46
Williams was found guilty of the rape and murder of Stacy Errickson. Williams abducted the mother of two when she stopped for gas in Jacksonville, Fla. He then drove around to multiple ATMs and had her take out $350. Errickson never arrived at work that day nor did she pick up her child from the babysitters. Her body was found badly beaten and bound in a park two weeks later. Williams confessed to killing Errickson. He’s also been linked to assaults on two other women.
Jason F. McGehee, 40
McGehee beat to death Johnny Melbourne, Jr., for telling police who was behind an Arkansas theft ring. While several people are accused of beating and torturing the 15-year-old Melbourne, co-defendants claim McGehee did most of it. During his trial, McGehee asked the jury for mercy and said he had grown up in a dysfunctional family and had a violent childhood. He was forced to watch as his father killed two of his pets. He also watched his step-father beat another pet, which died from its injuries. McGehee claimed his mother would force him to sleep outside for days and deny him food. The jury convicted him in 90 minutes.