The question as to whether Torture is an acceptable and justifiable method to coax a confession from a criminal has been brought to the forefront by the events of September 11th. Laws have long been established to punish those found guilty of crimes; in this country, one must first be found guilty for punishment to be rendered. To do it any other way would be a violation of the constitution. Torture is in direct conflict with the constitution of the U.S., therefore, it should not be practiced. Torture desecrates the essence of democracy by tearing away an individuals rights and subjecting them to cruel and unusual punishment.
Some may think that Torture is an acceptable tactic when millions of peoples lives, or just one person's life, are/is at stake. For example, many Americans believe that al Qaeda members in captivity that have thus remained silent and not provided interrogators with information should be administered truth serums so they can provide the U.S. with any information that could lead to the arrest of more al Qaeda members, and other terrorist fugitives still at large. If these prisoners were given this serum, they would have complete immunity because the 5th Amendment right of the prisoners would have been violated because what the prisoners say while under the serum could incriminate them.
Torture also violates the constitution from the standpoint that if someone is tortured, there is the presumption that that person is guilty of something. In cases in which Torture has been called for there is usually imperative that information leading to the prevention of terror or capture of assailants be obtained in a timely fashion. That would lead to prisoners being tortured without a trial, thus breaking another ideal this country was founded on. .
A reason Torture is not an effective measure is that many of the confessions obtained through these methods have been proven to be unreliable.
