This Pisses Me Off

[NoJo]

Precisely my point.

After reading your posts, I'm beginning to like the firing squad too.

 

[FazilKotuk]

After reading your posts, I'm beginning to like the firing squad too.

Ouch!

 

[Boxlicker101]

What do you say about the 33% of the inmates on the Ill. Death row that was proved to be innocent by DNA? Would the ‘feel good’ action of letting the family of the victim kill the accused still be worthwhile if you knew that the odds were two in three that the accused really was the killer or rapist?

I am always amazed that the very ones who would fight the government on something like health care would want to trust them with the lives of people. We have a few cases in the papers now that show how corrupt our justice dept is from the top down. How can you say that you want these people to have the power of life and death over everyone?

First, it's nowhere near that many, but even one is too many. Here is a link to more detailed data. http://72.14.205.104/search?q=cache..."illinois+death+row"&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=5&gl=us

It isn't really the government who does this. It is the jury, and they are not usually connected to the government.

Actually, those men were lucky they had been sentenced to death. If it had been life in prison, they would still be there, because appeals are not automatic, and an outside group would not have taken up their cases.

I still favor capital punishment, but I believe there should be an even higher standard of proof than there is now. I have heard and read of convictions when there was no real proof that the accused was guilty. Scott Carpenter comes to mind, and I am sure there have been others.

 

[Edward Teach]

First, it's nowhere near that many, but even one is too many. Here is a link to more detailed data. http://72.14.205.104/search?q=cache..."illinois+death+row"&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=5&gl=us

It isn't really the government who does this. It is the jury, and they are not usually connected to the government.

Actually, those men were lucky they had been sentenced to death. If it had been life in prison, they would still be there, because appeals are not automatic, and an outside group would not have taken up their cases.

I still favor capital punishment, but I believe there should be an even higher standard of proof than there is now. I have heard and read of convictions when there was no real proof that the accused was guilty. Scott Carpenter comes to mind, and I am sure there have been others.

Unbelievable.

 

[lisa123414]

It isn't really the government who does this. It is the jury, and they are not usually connected to the government.

Arent they the same people who would vote for the death penalty? And slavery, and segregation? This is my whole point, as humans we are flawed. As a lynch mob we are the worst possible thing.

 

[FazilKotuk]

Arent they the same people who would vote for the death penalty? And slavery, and segregation? This is my whole point, as humans we are flawed. As a lynch mob we are the worst possible thing.

I wouldn't equate the death penalty with slavery, but that's just me. I admit that there should be limits on the vox populi and its ability to curb civil liberties. However, just because one must protect personal freedom against too much democracy, doesn't mean that the people should be powerless to impose a sentence in a legally convoked court upon a convicted criminal. That's a far different animal. Trial by jury is a basic right under our Constitution for a reason.

 

[rgraham666]

I'll reiterate my reasons for opposing capital punishment and that will be the last time I post to this thread.

In order of importance they are.

1. You can't fix mistakes. And by my standards the first time we make a mistake we are all guilty of first degree murder. To whit a planned, unjustified and cold blooded killing.

2. It's not going to be carried out fairly. There are, so far as I know, no rich white men sitting on death row in the States. Minorities are grossly over represented.

3. It's generally a political tool, not a judicial one. In most places that execute people, they execute them for being in opposition to the government, or because they're on the official list of outsiders. Which ties into the last sentence of reason number two.

My opinion. No more from me.

 

[Boxlicker101]

Arent they the same people who would vote for the death penalty? And slavery, and segregation? This is my whole point, as humans we are flawed. As a lynch mob we are the worst possible thing.

In most jurisdictions where there is a death penalty, I believe the jury, after convicting somebody of a capital crime, meets to fix the penalty. If they vote unanimously for the death penalty, the judges can impose it or not, depending on their choice.

I'm quite sure there is nobody in the US who has ever voted for slavery.

There may be a few very old people who have voted for segregation. Or, they may be quite a few, depending on your definition of the word.

I believe lynch mobs of dogs are worse. There are such things, by the way. Get into a place where there is a pack of semi-wild guard dogs, and you'll see what I mean.

rgraham666


rgraham666 is Offline
I'll reiterate my reasons for opposing capital punishment and that will be the last time I post to this thread.

In order of importance they are.

1. You can't fix mistakes. And by my standards the first time we make a mistake we are all guilty of first degree murder. To whit a planned, unjustified and cold blooded killing.

2. It's not going to be carried out fairly. There are, so far as I know, no rich white men sitting on death row in the States. Minorities are grossly over represented.

3. It's generally a political tool, not a judicial one. In most places that execute people, they execute them for being in opposition to the government, or because they're on the official list of outsiders. Which ties into the last sentence of reason number two.

My opinion. No more from me.

I agree with your first assertion Rob. That is why I advocate absolute certainty in imposing the death penalty. I mean much higher than that required now.

I don't know of any rich people of any race or gender who are sitting on Death Row in the US. Generally speaking, rich people have sense enough to avoid doing something that can get them in such a predicament. Men, generally speaking, are even more overrepresented than minorities.

In the US, the death penalty is rarely, if ever, a political tool. Unless a person is politically wired, and that can apply to any party, that person's politics are immaterial.

 

[SEJim]

Society

For Miss Lisa, We as a society and a species are where we are in large part because we choose to protect not only our weakest but also our criminal elements. Sometimes a culling of the heard, especially of the folks who conciously choose to violate and comprimise the rights of others, is not a bad thing..... I also wish that Manson's mom had gotten an abortion.. ; )

Your friend, Jim


your quote

We are a society which seeks to lead. We are one of the few "civilized" nations that still resort to the death penalty.