# Chimpanzees Can Kill but Cannot Plan Capital Punishment by Richard Wrangham > “Chimpanzees are capable of killing without weapons, just as humans are, but they are incapable of capital punishment. What capital punishment needs is the ability to make a plan and to coordinate that plan.” > **— Richard Wrangham**, *How violence pointed to virtue, Harvard faculty interview* ## Sources and Context - **Original publication:** [How violence pointed to virtue](https://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2019/01/author-examines-the-strange-relationship-between-good-and-evil/) — Harvard faculty interview; Wrangham's comparative claim turns on linguistic planning, not mere capacity for violence. - **Exact original wording:** “Chimpanzees are capable of killing without weapons, just as humans are, but they are incapable of capital punishment. What capital punishment needs is the ability to make a plan and to coordinate that plan.” ## Related Articles and Collections - **Collection:** [[collections/Simple Reminders|Simple Reminders]] - **Article:** [[articles/The Insect World of Intelligence and Mind-Control Parasitism|The Insect World of Intelligence and Mind-Control Parasitism]] - **Article:** [[articles/Project Hail Mary and Other Intelligences|Project Hail Mary and Other Intelligences]] ## Related Topics - [[wiki/Human Animality|Human Animality]] - [[wiki/Nonhuman Intelligence|Nonhuman Intelligence]] ## Share on Social Media ``` “Chimpanzees are capable of killing without weapons, just as humans are, but they are incapable of capital punishment. What capital punishment needs is the ability to make a plan and to coordinate that plan.” — Richard Wrangham, How violence pointed to virtue https://bryantmcgill.com/simple-reminders-richard-wrangham-chimpanzees-kill-but-cannot-plan-capital ```