Those who believe in the death penalty?

Question

Did Willie "Pete" Williams in any way alter your feelings about the death penalty? Twenty two years in prison & cleared by DNA. A horrible chunk taken out of his life, but he still has a life to live. I wonder what people think, if they would put themselves in his shoes--those people who complain about their taxes (& such a tad!) paying for a person to live in prison, how wonderful that an innocent man was cleared, & not MURDERED which is what the death penalty is, in my opinion. PREMEDITATED MURDER. I anticipate really getting flak on this one.

I appreciate ALL the answers, that represent different points of view, whether they "agree" with me or not. I stated my position & wanted to know yours. THANK YOU Susan S for your logic. One major aspect of the death penalty is "revenge" & there is nothing civiliized about revenge, ( as well as so much else you expressed.) The antithesis of Jeff; publc hangings & shooting people. How archaic.So let's all bring a picnic lunch. (Isn't that what was done?) Also thanks to Jack--"Thou shalt not kill." That is "humane," & Lover of God, "I don't believe god ordained capital punishment." Certainly not a god of LOVE. Murder doesn't equate with "justice." Especially when the person is INNOCENT. Peter Piper--one doesn't have to "side" with the victim or the "alleged" killer, in this case, HE DIDN'T DO IT. Am I crying about this person who lost 22 years of his life? upallnigh stated exactly what I referred to--resentment about "paying." The "evidence" was WRONG.

I won't even respond to asian girl--because of her irrational selfishness. I hope I get more answers. They are very enlightening. Thank you!

I feel I must add that camadia said it all in one concise sentence. I've extended the time. At this point it will be difficult to choose "Best Answer." What's been truly sad is the answers who never consider putting themselves in the shoes of the accused. AND. I feel as deeply for the victims as I do for the falsely accused. But there can't be any "closure" if the innocent is punished.

Sorry--I misread Jack. He said god DID ordain capital punishment. How can this balance with "Thou shalt not kill?"

My last edit. It was "Lover of God," not Jack. I truly apologize. Haven't slept for 48 hours & shouldn't be here.

For clarification only: Peter Piper of the 1980s: WHO is the "simple minded fool?" I did not say YOU said to "take her side." You intimated by ".."While you're CRYING ABOUT THIS GUY, spare a thought for the victim too, she died" that I did not care. I did NOT say I was "crying about this guy." This question is about the death penalty only; not about victims, which is quite a separate issue. Read more thoughtfully & keep the focus. No justification for you to get vitriloic.

Interesting perspectives:; some assumptions, incorrect information re $ to keep someone alive, vengeance, retribution

Submitted mysteriously before I finished. Last words from me: Premeditated murder, which is what the death penalty is, is a moral crime. The "type" of alleged crime of the accused (rape, serial killer, etc.) has NOTHING to do with the "concept." One would have to believe we have a definitive ruler to judge degrees of crime; we don't, & even if we did, this could never justify the death penalty. I wish we had an "honourable mention," for many of the answers were humane, & logical. Lucid Dreamer, Susan S, Flagstaff mama, hyprocrisy & more. I'd like to give someone else a chance to answer w/my added details, & perhaps I can extend. I don't want the voters to choose, since their opinions are so diverse. Perhaps I've gotten the profile I hoped for...

Answer 1

Fact from fiction, truth from diction. Most people can not distinguish vengeance from justice the same as they can not tell lust from love. With each they have a better chance of distinguishing donkey doo from elephant crap. Most people want the vengeance/justice but they don't want to see it done or televised(yet they were breaking their neck trying to find that video of Saddam) If a person killed, and specially in a very grizzly way, execution, with a rape etc they feel specially endeared to kill the person responsible. When it seem that someone "got away with it" or did not get as bad as they should have gotten. Society(most people)feel short changed. Because they think if it were them or their loved ones, they would have gotten worse. And the worse that can be done is to kill someone. Because deep in the back of the mind there is the thought that the soul is eternal. If it were thought that when you died you just go off into oblivion the greater punishment would have them wake everyday in that 7 by 5 ft living tomb reflecting on why they are there. But since most secretly believe the soul lives on after death. There is a hope that that person's soul will end up in Hell, or some bad place like it.

Answer 2

You are getting answers based on serious mistakes on the facts. Here are a few things that some of the people who answered this do not know:

Jeff B –
The percentage isn’t small. Since the mid 1970’s 1060 people were executed and 123 were released with evidence of their innocence. That is over 11%. Would you be satisfied if 11% of all surgery patients had the wrong arm amputated?

Once someone is executed, the case is closed. If the wrong person paid for the crime, the killer is still out there and the search for the real killer is over, leaving him out there.

Nolo_8-
A couple of other cases. (The Willie Williams case is too recent for me to have the details.) Ray Krone (100th person exonerated) was an average middle class working man, with no history of criminal activity. An air force veteran, wrongfully convicted largely on bad forensics. Served 10 years. Kirk Bloodsworth (first man exonerated with DNA evidence) Ex marine, no criminal history, marine corps veteran. Mistaken witnesses. Served 8 years. These men were ordinary, good people. Yes, the nightmare can happen to any one of us. You can read about the people exonerated at the Death Penalty Information Center.

Upallnight and Asian girl-
The death penalty costs much more than life in prison. And the extra costs begin even before the trial. Did you know that a death penalty trial actually consists of 2 trials, one to decide on guilt or innocence, the other to decide the sentence. Separate sets of witnesses are required, the cases are much more complicated, it takes longer to select a jury. (Why not spend the extra money on families of the victims. It is needed.)

Also, DNA is available in no more than 20% of all murder cases. It is not a miracle cure for wrongful convictions.

The Doctor of Stuff-
Speeding up executions will guarantee that we execute innocent people.

Life without parole is available in 48 states. It means what it says and it is not a picnic to be locked up for 23 hours a day, forever.


Lover of God-
The death penalty is not a issue of liberal vs. conservative. People of diverse political views oppose the death penalty because they know it is not an effective crime control method.

Other facts-

Re: Who gets the death penalty
The death penalty is not reserved for the “worst of the worst,” but rather for defendants with the worst lawyers. When is the last time a wealthy person was sentenced to death, let alone executed??

Re: Deterrence
The death penalty is not a deterrent. Murder rates are actually higher in states with the death penalty than in states without it. Moreover, people who kill or commit other serious crimes do not think they will be caught (if they think at all.)


Re: Victims families
People should know that the death penalty is very hard on victims’ families. They must relive their ordeal in the courts and the media. Life without parole is sure, swift and rarely appealed. Some victims families who support the death penalty in principal prefer life without parole because of how the death penalty affects families like theirs.

Last of all, opposing the death penalty does not mean a person condones brutal crimes or excuses the people who commit them. I believe that the dialogue on the death penalty should be based on VERIFIABLE facts. People should make up their minds using common sense not revenge.

I hope that people will take the time to learn the facts. The subject is too important to decide without spending some time finding them out.

Answer 3

You all say we have no right who lives and who dies but we do........ At least that is what the law says! No we should not Kill people for any reasons . It goes without saying but that is Hypocritical...... 40 million people have been murdered and no one even batted an eye, If you want to abolish the death penalty you have to abolish abortion as well it is the same taking a life.
Judgment is not our to give. You can look at it any way you want but we are just kidding ourselves. What if it was you, your friend, your sister your brother etc who was up on murder charges, how would you feel about killing them?
Look at your own soul...........

Answer 4

What people who take your view always seem to lose sight of is this:

A person was raped and murdered.

An unfortunate side effect of the wrong person being blamed is that the guilty got away. However, in some cases, the cops "round up the usual suspects" the bad guys who haven't been nailed for something yet. At any rate, while you're crying about this guy, spare a thought for the victim too, she's dead.

Edit-I didn't say "take her side" I said think about her, learn to read you simple minded fool.

Answer 5

God instituted the dying Penalty contained in the Mosaic regulation. God will use Hell and the Lake of fireplace as a 2nd dying (non secular separation from Him for all Eternity) So, confident, God helps the dying Penalty.

Answer 6

So lets take away the consequences for serial child murderers, and the worst they will have to fear is life imprisonment. God ordained capital punishment, and we should listen to you. Liberals should live on a utopian island where they can hug a thug all day, and not be supported by any military, nor given any prisons or law enforcement. How long would it take before the non pacifist would slaughter the pacifists?
Goodness is the way, yes, but justice must be served as well.

Answer 7

Guilty. Follow that man. Click. Boom. Is it better to make the mistake of setting a predator free, so he can kill 10 innocent people, instill fear, cause chaos in society? I'm glad that DNA technology is helping us to be more accurate in determining guilt or innocence, but the principal behind the death penalty is sound.

Answer 8

ok was that a question or statement ... just wondering but i will tell you that, some people in this world do deserve the death penalty theres a statistic for everything one out of however have to be left with the short end of the stick, do you want to go on paying taxes to keep a man alive and fed ? or better kill the man that may have molested one of your family members .. its a paradox really .. i wouldnt want to keep someone alive to be proud of his crimes ...

Answer 9

I believe in death penalty but every case should be tested using DNA if possible and if they cannot prove then just put them in prison for life, if they can prove with DNA then set them free with compensation(money,home etc.) or carry out with death if guilty.

Answer 10

Thou shall not kill..............I don't believe in the death penalty....

"'Those who approach the Sacrament of Penance obtain pardon from God's mercy for the offense committed against him, and are, at the same time, reconciled with the Church which they have wounded by their sins and which by charity, by example, and by prayer labors for their conversion.' [LG 11 # 2.]"