Currently, capital punishment is a very controversial issue in countries around the world, including the United States of America. Capital punishment is defined as “the execution of an offender sentenced to death after having been convicted by a court of a criminal offense” (“Capital” 1). The death penalty dates back to the laws of ancient China, where it was used to punish various crimes (Reggio 1). The first European settlers introduced the death penalty to America, and England was the country that had the greatest influence on its application in the colonies. In early colonial America, people could be sentenced to death for committing crimes that today would be considered insignificant; these crimes included “stealing grapes, killing chickens, and trading with the Indians” (“History” 1). Today in the United States, offenders who have committed heinous crimes, such as murder, treason, espionage, aggravated kidnapping, and hijacking, can be sentenced to the death penalty after have been found guilty by the courts (“Offenses” 3). The United States is not the only country to use the death penalty as a form of punishment for heinous crimes; in 2012, twenty-one countries around the world implemented it (Phrases 6). In 2012, the five countries in the world that executed the highest number of people were China (thousands), Iran (314+), Iraq (129+), Saudi Arabia (79+) and the United States (43) (Sentences 48). In 2013, Amnesty International reported that in 2011 and 2012, 680 and 682 executions took place worldwide, respectively (Phrases 5). These figures do not include the number of executions in China, a country which has more executions than all the countries in the world combined, because precise data cannot be obtained...... middle of paper.. .....org. Innocence Project, nd Web. June 26, 2013. “Methods of execution. Authorized methods”. Deathpenaltyinfo.org. Death Penalty Information Center, 2014. Web. April 8, 2014. “Number of executions by state and region since 1976.” Deathpenaltyinfo.org. Death Penalty Information Center, April 4, 2014. “Race and the Death Penalty.” ACLU.org. American Civil Liberties Union, February 26, 2003. Web. May 4, 2014. Reggio, Michael H. “History of the Death Penalty.” Society's Final Solution: A History and Discussion of the Death Penalty. Ed. Laura E. Randa. Lanham, MD: University Press of America, 1997. 1-11. Print.Simpson, Ian. “Maryland becomes last US state to abolish the death penalty.” Reuter Edition US Reuters.com, May 2, 2013. Web April 8, 2014. “Women and the death penalty.” Deathpenaltyinfo.org. Death Penalty Information Center, 2014. Web May 6. 2014