Death Penalty Background Quiz

The Death Penalty is also known as...

• Capital Punishment
• Death Squads
• Execution Methods
• Habeas Corpus

The idea of the Death Penalty as a deterrent to crime dates back to...

• 20th Century (America)
• 14th Century (Europe)
• 18th Century (Babylon)
• 12th Century (Asia)

The most popular method of execution in the 10th Century was...

• crucifixion
• beheading
• hanging
• impaling

What country influenced America the most when it came to laws, such as The Death Penalty?

• Russia
• France
• Spain
• Britain

Although some states began to abolish the Death Penalty in the early 1900s, many brought it back for fear of...

• World War I (spies)
• World War II (prohibition)
• Civil War (treason)
• Vietnam War (anarchy)

The most "humane" way to execute someone in the early 1920s was...

• hanging
• electrocution
• gas chamber
• firing squad

Who convinced most Americans that the death penalty was a "necessary social measure in the United States"?

• the president
• criminologists
• freedom fighters
• protesters

Statistically, what race is most executed in the United States?

• whites
• blacks
• hispanics
• middle easterners

What conclusion can be made about interracial murders (blacks killing whites, versus whites killing blacks)?

• If a black person is killed, the killer is more likely to be put to death.
• If a white person is killed the killer is less likely to be put to death.
• If a black person is killed, the killer is less likely to be put to death.
• If a white person is killed, the killer is more likely to be put to death.

Why have more people been exonerated (found not guilty)of the death penalty in more recent years?

• Public opinion about the death penalty has changed.
• More people are afraid to convict someone.
• Jurors do not understand the laws involved in a death penalty case.
• No one wants to be the one who puts someone to death.