Since November 2011, the decline in the number of adults who favor the death penalty for those convicted of murder has declined to 55% with an opposing 37% as a significant minority.

The death penalty is an exceptionally controversial topic within politics in the United States.  It is a topic that is often brought up in political elections as well as within your average American households.  Overtime the general opinion of the death penalty has greatly declined.

Many believe that this could be due to religious beliefs as well as a general growth and change within today’s society.

The death penalty is legal in 32 states and since the year 1976, there have been 1,376 individuals put to death by the legal system.  Out of those individuals 769 were white, 473 were black, 110 were Hispanic, and 24 were of other decent.

There has been a significant drop in the number of death penalty sentences given since the year 1999.  Prior to 1999, there was an average of over 200 death penalty sentences a year.  Following 1999, there has been a gradual, steady drop in the number of death penalty sentences give.

Could these declining numbers in opinions on the death penalty be a tribute to the fact that there are less death sentences being ruled in the courts?

American International College students were unaware of the steady declines in people’s opinions on the death penalty.

This controversial topic is something that is important for people of all ages to understand, especially those who have recently breached the age where they are now legal to vote.

AIC students expressed their various opinions on the topic, from agreeing that the death penalty should exist, to thinking that it is inhumane.  As Springfield is a place where violence is unfortunately not so out of the ordinary, this is an important topic for the students and faculty to be knowledgeable on.

Bailey Robinson, a senior at AIC, says that she feels the death penalty to be a very uncivilized concept.

“To have a group of people determine when someone is going to die seems wrong to me.  I am not completely against it, but the idea of the death penalty is unsettling for me personally,” Robinson said.

Violence in Springfield always seems to escalate as the temperatures get warmer and the sun is shining down.  This is a reoccurring problem for the residents of Springfield and the college is not unaffected.  With violence taking place in the downtown areas, students weekend activates can be jeopardized as well as their safety.

The idea of the death penalty sentences shrinking in numbers means that the violence may be at a decline as well. It is hard, however, to determine if it will stay that way.  What determines if someone deserves a life sentence versus the death penalty sentence?  The most controversial part is it humane to determine when someone dies by the nature of law.

Daniel Naja, also a senior at AIC, thinks that the death penalty is necessary in some instances.

“I feel that sometimes people commit crimes that are so inhumane themselves that they deserve the ultimate punishment.  Religion can influence peoples opinions but I think that if someone takes a person or people’s lives, they don’t deserve their own,” Naja said.

This topic will continue to create question and controversy for years to come, but a steady decline in numbers are a proven way to see that many people seem to be leaning away from it as a whole.