Why do pro-life supporters who are dead set against abortion support the death penalty?

Question

I just found that sort of odd. Isn't it murder in any case on both issues? What do you think?

Answer 1

In most cases, people on death row did something to get there.

Answer 2

they believe that all babies deserve the right to live..but the same does not apply to rapists and murderers

Answer 3

It is killing a human life in both respects.  However, those on death row have had a chance to live a decent, productive life and have shown that they cannot through their crimes.  A baby has not even had a chance to live when it's been killed.

Answer 4

Just another example of conservative hypocrisy.

Answer 5

There is no inherent contradiction in being pro-life and pro-capital punishment, OR vice-versa. The abortion issue generally comes down to where you believe that life begins. Pro-lifers think life begins at conception (and therefore abortion is murder), whereas pro-choicers believe life begins at birth. Both sides will dazzle you with scientific studies and supposed evidence to support their case, but there simply is no way to prove either side - it boils down to what you believe.

The death penalty is a completely unrelated issue.  I supported capital punishment for a long time, but I have changed my stance over the years, for several reasons:

1. By far the most compelling is this: Sometimes the legal system gets it wrong. In the last 30 years in the U.S., over 100 people have been released from death row because they were exonerated by DNA evidence. Unfortunately, DNA evidence is not available in most cases. No matter how rare it is, the government should not risk executing one single innocent person.

For those who say that the death penalty kills only those who "deserve it," - please read the above paragraph again.

Really, that should be reason enough for most people. If you need more, read on:

2. Because of higher pre-trial expenses, longer trials, extra expenses associated with prosecuting a DP case, and the appeals process (which is necessary - see reason #1), it costs taxpayers MUCH more to execute prisoners than to imprison them for life.

3. The deterrent effect is questionable at best. Violent crime rates are actually higher in death penalty jurisdictions. This may seem counterintuitive, and there are many theories about why this is (Ted Bundy saw it as a challenge, so he chose Florida – the most active execution state at the time – to carry out his final murder spree). Personally, I think it has to do with the hypocrisy of taking a stand against murder…by killing people. The government becomes the bad parent who says, ‘do as I say, not as I do.’

4. There’s also an argument to be made that death is too good for the worst of our criminals. Let them wake up and go to bed every day of their lives in a prison cell, and think about the freedom they DON’T have, until they rot of old age. When Ted Bundy was finally arrested in 1978, he told the police officer, “I wish you had killed me.”  Khalid Shaikh Mohammed (the architect of the 9/11 attacks) would love nothing better than to be put to death.  In his words, "I have been looking to be a martyr [for a] long time."

5. Most governments are supposed to be secular, but for those who invoke Christian law in this debate, you can find arguments both for AND against the death penalty in the Bible. For example, Matthew 5:38-39 insists that violence shall not beget violence. James 4:12 says that God is the only one who can take a life in the name of justice. Leviticus 19:18 warns against vengeance (which, really, is what the death penalty amounts to). In John 8:7, Jesus himself says, "let he who is without sin cast the first stone."

Answer 6

abortion is spilling innocent blood. that in it's self is a crime.

The death penalty is a tool to deter crime and bring repayment to the offended.

It's simply not the same.

If we as a society say that abortion (which is killing) should be legal and up to the mother than how can we say other forms of murder are illegal.

So we say all murder is wrong and it comes with a punishment equally horrendous.

Answer 7

Well in my opinion,,, it isn't an all or nothing in either case. I believe that abortion is killing, but I think if there will be SEVERE defects, or in some cases of incest or rape, it MAY be okay, but that should be with a lot of consideration even in those cases. As well as the death penalty, I don't think just because you kill someone, you should be killed. I think though in a few instances it is necessary. Both should not be taken lightly, because it is life. But mainly, abortion is taking an innocent life, the death penalty is a punishment for serious crimes. War takes life, but sometimes it is necessary. It's all along the same lines.  We just need to be careful.