Assessing the State Of Capital Punishment as a Means Of Curbing Violent Crimes In Nigeria

Abstract

The increase in the rate of violent crimesisno longer news in Nigeria, especially the current state of bomb explosion, and robbery and murder. No society exists without some norms and these have translated in many societies as guiding laws which emanated from different socio-cultural experiences. In Nigeria, punishment of such violent crimes as armed robbery and murder by capital punishment or death sentence is still very much in place. This study was intended to appraise the state of capital punishment in Nigeria, looking at its effectiveness in curbing violent crimes. The study used a group of Nigerian youths as a sample, accidentally drawn to appraise the perception of the people on capital punishment, and this study was guided by the abolitionist and retentionist schools whose views and positions were within the tents of retributivism and utilitarianism and control theory respectively. While using simple percentage for data analysis, it was found out that though capital punishment has not produced the expected effect, but was believed to have produced some deterrent value for the offender and the would-be offender. It has therefore been recommended that Nigerian governments at all levels should expedite actions in the area of employment generation and also make policies for community policing and include in the school curriculum security education.