Wrongful Conviction/ Injustice Community Group
For people and families who have tasted or advocate against the horrors of injustice
Over the years, I have made my opposition to the death penalty known to all those around me.
The arguments against the imposition of the death penalty in America are numerous and well known within the criminal justice community-----that the death penalty is too expensive, that it is arbitrary and a disproportionate number of death row inmates are minorities, that it is not a deterrent to crime, that it is barbaric and ritualistic and that any civilized government taking the life of one of its citizens is morally wrong. Each reason has merit and my purpose is not to address these particular issues.
Each of these issues is debatable and perhaps arguable.
But the one issue which is not arguable and everyone can understand----regardless of their education, social level, or religion----is that it is morally wrong to execute an innocent man or woman. This issue trumps all the other issues regarding the death penalty.
The likelihood of executing an innocent man is too great when we have a punishment just as effective as the death penalty in LWOP-----life without the possibility of parole.
The death penalty issue and all criminal justice issues are personal for me, as I was sent to prison for almost a decade for a crime I did not commit.
I, firsthand, know that innocent people go to prison, some to death row. I also am certain that there are thousands upon thousands of innocent men and women in prison, many of whom have been condemned to be executed.
Since the advent of DNA technology, we have learned just how fallible our criminal justice system is in America and there is no method we can ever employ to make it perfect. As long as we have a legal system in which the major players have an agenda to convict rather than see justice prevail, this will never change.
The number of exonerees who have benefited from DNA evidence is in the hundreds, some of whom were on death row. I have no doubt that we have already executed innocent men on death row.
This needs to stop. The chance of executing an innocent man or woman is too great for us to continue with condemning a person to death row.
No doubt, some crimes are so egregious and such an affront to society than many think the perpetrators do not deserve to live. Personally, I do not want to play God and decide who "deserves" to live and who deserves to die. I do not think society has the right to impose death on any citizen; judgment should come from God or from the supreme being we choose to worship.
And I close with a fact that should send chills to all those who believe in morality, fairness, and humanity------
There has been one person exonerated for every 10 people who have been executed in the last 36 years.
Thank you for reading.
rewdiazepam
The arguments against the imposition of the death penalty in America are numerous and well known within the criminal justice community-----that the death penalty is too expensive, that it is arbitrary and a disproportionate number of death row inmates are minorities, that it is not a deterrent to crime, that it is barbaric and ritualistic and that any civilized government taking the life of one of its citizens is morally wrong. Each reason has merit and my purpose is not to address these particular issues.
Each of these issues is debatable and perhaps arguable.
But the one issue which is not arguable and everyone can understand----regardless of their education, social level, or religion----is that it is morally wrong to execute an innocent man or woman. This issue trumps all the other issues regarding the death penalty.
The likelihood of executing an innocent man is too great when we have a punishment just as effective as the death penalty in LWOP-----life without the possibility of parole.
The death penalty issue and all criminal justice issues are personal for me, as I was sent to prison for almost a decade for a crime I did not commit.
I, firsthand, know that innocent people go to prison, some to death row. I also am certain that there are thousands upon thousands of innocent men and women in prison, many of whom have been condemned to be executed.
Since the advent of DNA technology, we have learned just how fallible our criminal justice system is in America and there is no method we can ever employ to make it perfect. As long as we have a legal system in which the major players have an agenda to convict rather than see justice prevail, this will never change.
The number of exonerees who have benefited from DNA evidence is in the hundreds, some of whom were on death row. I have no doubt that we have already executed innocent men on death row.
This needs to stop. The chance of executing an innocent man or woman is too great for us to continue with condemning a person to death row.
No doubt, some crimes are so egregious and such an affront to society than many think the perpetrators do not deserve to live. Personally, I do not want to play God and decide who "deserves" to live and who deserves to die. I do not think society has the right to impose death on any citizen; judgment should come from God or from the supreme being we choose to worship.
And I close with a fact that should send chills to all those who believe in morality, fairness, and humanity------
There has been one person exonerated for every 10 people who have been executed in the last 36 years.
Thank you for reading.
rewdiazepam
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I did the dumbest thing today. I charged my earbuds, unplugged the block and put the block in my little bag instead of the earbuds. I wasn't happy about that when I got to the gym. What a dummy!
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Hey All...I hope that you have a lovely, peaceful beginning of your weekI have a bunch of chores that need doing but may put them off til tomorrow and just hang out with my landlord/roomie todayWhat about you?...Anything special going on?Have a great day and take good care of you!!..Xo
And then there's the stress of being a guard, and even more stress from those that carry it out.
Families don't get nearly the relief that they think that they will (with the few exceptions of those that threatened repeatedly to get out and kill them...).
And like you said.....so, so, so, so very many people have turned out to be innocent.
Any other system and we wouldn't tolerate 10% failure rate (think of it.....if 10% of cars killed the passengers....would any of us drive?
Given the fact that the death penalty is fraught with so many problems----morally, ethically, and legally----I have a question for everyone in society.
Since we have LWOP and the system has the ability to place a LWOP inmate in isolation, why do we even continue this debate?
Why isn't the death penalty abolished? What is to be gained by such a issue that seems to divide us?
If anyone can give me a justification for the death penalty, I would like to hear it.
Why not just get rid of it, along with all its problems?
rewdiazepam
This is the sentence that Aaron Hernandez, the former tight end for the New England Patriots, received a few days ago.
Some people who are pro-death penalty will use the excuse that we have to execute these guys because, if we do not, they may harm or kill someone in prison. To me, that is just the argument of someone who is looking for a flimsy excuse to keep the death penalty.
This is the very reason I mentioned someone could be sentenced with LWOP AND kept in solitary confinement or at least in a single cell. I wanted to rebut any argument that they may hurt someone else in prison.
Most states have some LWOP statute and that is a viable alternative to the death penalty.
rewdiazepam
The death penalty in itself is a travesty and is unjust and EVERYBODY knows it... The person sentenced to death doesn't just have the penalty carried out if one wants to believe it ... They're brought to the point of death usually over and over again... Everyone who loves them are devastated by this... Their lives are basically over... Quite often the defense lawyers are also badly effected and believe they have to continue this fight as killing someone is just wrong... And those who are standing up for the 'victim' also can't move on to the next part in their lives as they to have to face this over and over... Who does in benefit?? ...No one!.. It's barbaric and cruel and I think shameful
Most will not admit this as the vengeance aspect makes them look small and does not always reflect well on them as human beings, especially if they are Christian orientated. I suppose wanting a certain amount of revenge is human nature, but I don't think it is healthy in the long run.
The death penalty crowd will not just outright admit their stance is motivated by revenge, so they point to all these silly and invalid excuses for why we should keep the death penalty----the cost, the eye-for-an-eye theory, the absurd theory that by killing them they can never kill again, etc.
These excuses are just red herrings to mask their real reason for their death penalty stance----revenge and retribution.
The death penalty is about nothing but revenge against a person we THINK is the perpetrator of a serious crime.
Revenge and Retribution-----nothing more, nothing less.
rewdiazepam
I do not believe our current system of "prison" as a consequence is effective. More poor people are placed in prison due to not being able to pay the fees, fines, charges, services required, and their lives are already on the edge prior to the sentence being served. Those who kill others, get a bed, three meals, roof over their head, and a schedule for their consequence, same as those who are unable to pay their fees. The system is bought and paid for by lobbyists, deep pockets, corporation kick-backs, and promotes illegal actions with the lack of oversight for the management from the top to the bottom of the system.
A lawyer is a person, and when they close the books on a case, their feelings are personal. Often, it is a sad case that changes their perspective from hard stance, to flexible.
I agree, it's difficult to find a way to make sense of the death penalty and how it is applied.