Should Capital Punishment Be Reintroduced In The United Kingdom Essay

Should Capital Punishment Be Reintroduced In The United Kingdom - Essay Example The Crime Disorder Act 1998 abolished the death penalty in the UK for serious crimes of treason, piracy and technically for murder. Section 36 of the Act replaced the capital punishment for treason and violent piracy acts as enshrined in the Piracy Act 1837, with a lighter sentence of a maximum life imprisonment. Despite the seemingly unrelated nature of the crimes to murder, the crimes were previously classified under the same category of most serious crimes in the country’s history. In light of this reasoning, a lesser sentence for piracy and treason should have the same effect on sentencing for murder cases.  The reform of sentencing for capital offenses in the United Kingdom since 1964 has been influenced by the growing need to preserve human rights from historical violations. In particular, the Human Rights Act 1998 outlaws any public institution from acting in a manner that principally contravenes the ECHR), unless the provisions of any other key statutory regulation h ave no alternative solution. The Act also requires courts of law and tribunals to consider any directions, verdicts or counsel of the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR), and to give their legal interpretation the widest of consideration in conforming to the Convention’s provisions on human rights. The Convention set up the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR), which deliberates on appeal cases of murder from member states.  Any murder convict who believes his or her human rights have been trampled upon by a member state.