三、英譯中：（35分） Capital punishment (death penalty) is the premeditated and planned taking of a human life by a government in response to a crime committed by that legally convicted person. In the past, capital punishment has been practiced by most societies, although currently only 58 nations actively practice it, with 96 countries having abolished it. Although many nations have abolished capital punishment, over 60% of the world’s population lives in countries where executions take place. This is because the People’s Republic of China, India, the United States of America, and Indonesia, which are the four most populous countries in the world, continue to apply the death penalty.
Many believe that the death penalty should be abolished for several reasons. Firstly, the death penalty is very expensive to maintain. Most people do not realize that carrying out one death sentence costs 2-5 times more than keeping that same criminal in prison for the rest of his or her life. This expense comes as a result of the seemingly endless appeals, additional required procedures, and legal wrangling involved in the judicial process. Secondly, the death penalty clogs up the court system. The U.S. court system goes to enormous lengths before allowing a death sentence to be carried out. All the necessary appeals, motions, hearings, and briefs monopolize much of the time of judges, attorneys, and other court employees as well as use up courtrooms and facilities. Third, the death penalty is an ineffective deterrent to violent crime. Life in prison is a far more effective deterrent than the death penalty, which, in some cases, actually represents an act of clemency for the criminal. With a death sentence, the suffering is over in an instant. With life in prison, however, the pain goes on for decades. Prisoners are confined to a cage, living in an environment of rape and violence where they are treated as animals.
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