I think imposing the death penalty is wrong, for the reasons stated. But if a convict were offered the CHOICE of execution or LWOPP, I wouldn’t object to that.
There are convicts who WANT to be executed rather than be imprisoned for life, and I don’t see why they should be denied.
The only truly innocent man I can think of who was executed was Bruno Hauptmann, who was guilty of being an immigrant in the vicinity of the Lindbergh home.
But I’ve read of numerous instances where the “clear guilt” of an executed convict came under SEVERE doubt after it was too late to retry. You don’t get a lot of co-operation from police and prosecutors when you try to find out whether they executed someone for a crime they didn’t commit. Watch “The Thin Blue Line” to see an example of how anxious authorities were to get (and carry out) a capital conviction against Randall Adams, a man they knew to be innocent (the real cop-killer was a juvenile, and they knew they wouldn’t be able to send HIM to the chair).
The death penalty is simply DIFFERENT. This is built into the laws (in many states), and the lengthy, traumatic, and expensive appeals process automatically comes into play the moment the gavel comes down at the sentencing. Death sentences have been overturned not simply because the convict’s innocence was proven, but because the policework, prosecution, and judicial conduct leading to the sentence were sloppy (if not outright illegal), malicious, or simply not conclusive.
Frankly, if a killer DOES wind up on the streets after his conviction, it’s more likely because the sentence was overturned on appeal (which is totally appropriate; if due process is violated, the conviction cannot stand) than because he escaped.
With an LWOPP, the standards of review are not so high, and the appeals process is much simpler and cheaper.
I think imposing the death penalty is wrong, for the reasons stated. But if a convict were offered the CHOICE of execution or LWOPP, I wouldn’t object to that.
There are convicts who WANT to be executed rather than be imprisoned for life, and I don’t see why they should be denied.
The only truly innocent man I can think of who was executed was Bruno Hauptmann, who was guilty of being an immigrant in the vicinity of the Lindbergh home.
But I’ve read of numerous instances where the “clear guilt” of an executed convict came under SEVERE doubt after it was too late to retry. You don’t get a lot of co-operation from police and prosecutors when you try to find out whether they executed someone for a crime they didn’t commit. Watch “The Thin Blue Line” to see an example of how anxious authorities were to get (and carry out) a capital conviction against Randall Adams, a man they knew to be innocent (the real cop-killer was a juvenile, and they knew they wouldn’t be able to send HIM to the chair).
The death penalty is simply DIFFERENT. This is built into the laws (in many states), and the lengthy, traumatic, and expensive appeals process automatically comes into play the moment the gavel comes down at the sentencing. Death sentences have been overturned not simply because the convict’s innocence was proven, but because the policework, prosecution, and judicial conduct leading to the sentence were sloppy (if not outright illegal), malicious, or simply not conclusive.
Frankly, if a killer DOES wind up on the streets after his conviction, it’s more likely because the sentence was overturned on appeal (which is totally appropriate; if due process is violated, the conviction cannot stand) than because he escaped.
With an LWOPP, the standards of review are not so high, and the appeals process is much simpler and cheaper.