A poll drafted in July 2012 shows that the death penalty is again a contentious issue for Canadians and one that might be good to discuss in a letter to your MP. The death penalty was outlawed in Canada in 1975 and has had changing results in polls since then. The highest percentage supporting it was 79 percent in 1987. The lowest percentage was 49 percent in 2004. The upticked drafted in the 2012 poll was 65 percent in favor of the death penalty. The change seems to be precipitated by dramatic murders involving children. According to pollster and
Ipsos
senior vice-president John Wright, t
he questions Canadians seem to be asking are whether rehabilitation is always possible for all criminals and whether some criminals are inherently evil.