IMO, the various States have to decide what the purpose of the death penalty really is.

If it's the eye for an eye philosophy, that's one thing. If it's a get-even punishment, that's another. If it's to rid the world of specific 'monsters', that's yet another. Some arguments--both pro and con--hold up well to scrutiny.


"Capital punishment used to be sentenced for a variety of crimes in Canada, but as of 1961 its use was limited to homicide and treason.
On December 10, 1962, Robert Turpin and Arthur Lucas were the last people to be executed in Canada.
In 1967, a moratorium was placed on the death penalty.
In 1976, the death penalty was abolished as a sentence in Canada.
A total of 710 people have been executed in Canada; all were hanged."

from

http://www.victimsofviolence.on.ca/rev2/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=327&Itemid=17


(It appears the issue is not as cut and dried when it comes to lethal injection. The folks supplying the drugs don't want to be named--ie., the drug manufacturers because they fear backlash from folks who don't agree with the death penalty, and the administrators of the injections for the same reason.)