Hello,
Thank you for reaching out for help. The specific types of resources allowed in your assignment should be listed, if there are specific requirements, in your assignment text. For example, it may say that you require a certain number a scholarly, academic, or peer-reviewed journal articles. This video (What is an Academic Article?) can help explain those.
Generally, you can always use library journal articles and databases in your assignments. A library database is just a collection of articles, books, and other resources available from the library!
If you log into the AIU Virtual Campus and click on Library in the top navigation bar, it will open you to our website (shown below).
On this page there are a number of places to search for resources. The search box at the top under Find Articles and eBooks searches most of our databases at once. It can be a great starting place, however, it can also sometimes find too many resources. Further down on the page, under, Search Individual Databases, you will find each individual database along with descriptions of the types and subjects of resources within them.
In this case, given that capital punishment is a controversial societal topic, I would suggest that you scroll down this individual database list and click on Opposing Viewpoints (shown below). Opposing Viewpoints has 'viewpoint' pages about specific issues such as Capital Punishment. You can find pages that are 'pro' capital punishment as well as pages that are 'con' capital punishment, along with supporting articles!
This video will show you how to search and use Opposing Viewpoints. On this site, choose keywords based on your search topic. In this case, you should just be able to search: Capital Punishment.
I hope this helps, please let us know if you have other questions or need more help!