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Chapter 11; Question 4 1. What term denotes punishment by execution of someone officially judged to have committed a serious crime? The term that denotes the punishment by execution of someone officially judged to have committed a serious crime is capital punishment. Capital punishment is now defined as when a person commits a serious crime such as first-degree murder or for intentional killing of a police officer. In the past times the Western world used capital punishment for crimes such as witchcraft, rape, treason, kidnapping, murder, and many other acts that were deemed criminal offenses. Until recent decades, a lot of states in the United States of America practiced this form of punishment, but many of them have decided to use capital sentences aka death penalty for more serious crimes such as the case of State of NH vs. Michael Addison which involved the intentional killing of a Manchester N.H. police officer because of the controversial arguments that surrounds the ethical concerns with the death penalty sentence. Unfortunately, the judicial system has too many flaws and is not 100% fool proof to prevent the unjustifiable conviction and execution of a wrongly accused person so most convicted death row inmates spend many years in jail before the capital punishment sentence is carried out, to allow the proper legal rights of the accused to be carried out. The methods of execution that has been used through the many years are: âž ¢ Hanging- it is the method that a rope noose is put around the criminal’s neck and a platform they are standing on was removed from beneath them. âž ¢ Firing squad- a group of armed shooters lined up and the accused would stand, blindfolded and upon command the armed shooters would shoot several rounds ... ...Marriage'." CNS News.com. N.p., 9 Dec. 2013. Web. 17 Dec. 2013. . Catholic News Service. "The Catholic Church, Homosexuality and Gay Marriage." The Catholic Church, Homosexuality and Gay Marriage. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 Dec. 2013. . "First Degree Murder Law & Legal Definition." First Degree Murder Law & Legal Definition. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Dec. 2013. . "Lethal Injection Procedures." Lethal Injection Procedures. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 Dec. 2013. . "Methods of Execution: Gas Chamber."Methods of Execution: Gas Chamber. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Dec. 2013.