Analysis of Edward Koch’s Argument in Death and Justice Essay Sample

In “Death and Justice: How Capital Punishment Affirms Life”, former New York Mayor Edward Koch argues in favor of the legalization of the death penalty in New York, claiming that it would save more innocent lives. Koch provides compelling evidence in the form of statistics and real-world examples of murderers who have avoided the death penalty and gone on to kill again. However, he does not consider the possibility that the death penalty could be wrongfully applied, and that an innocent person could be put to death. Furthermore, he does not take into account the emotional toll that the death penalty would take on the families of victims. In the end, I agree with Koch that the death penalty should be legal, but only if the family of the victim