irginia was put to death in 1622. Since then, more than 18,000 convicted felons have been put to death (Bedau, 1982). Although it almost certainly predates written records, the death penalty first appeared in the Babylonian Code of Hammurabi which dates back to the eighteenth century B.C. This code called for death as punishment for a total of twenty-five different crimes. The oldest known death sentence for a particular individual was carried out was in ancient Egypt and dates back to the sixteenth century B.C. Although many ancient societies punished minor if not petty crimes with death, none were as severe as the Draconian Code which governed Athens during the seventh century B.C. According to this legal code, every illegal act was punished by death. During the fifth century B.C., the Roman Empire also followed suit with a harsh code governing the prescription of the death penalty. Under their code for example, death was the punishment for "publishing insulting songs" and "disturbing the peace of the city at night (Kronenwetter, 1993). However, unlike the Athenians, Romans used execution as a form of public entertainment. Being the first to do so, they put many unfortunate individuals to death through their infamous gladiatorial games. Other methods of execution practiced during ancient times included stoning, burning, and crucifixion. These forms of execution were also practiced widely in Europe during the Middle Ages, with the addition of beheading as a punishment for those accused of being witches or branded as heretics by the Church (Kronenwetter, 1993). This persecution caused many to flee Europe in order to gain freedom in the "New World." Although they found freedom from religious persecution in the "New World," the colonial settlers brought many European laws with them. In particular, many of the laws were borrowed from England, including their laws that governed the use of capital punishment. At that time, England followed ...
