Based on the responses I’ve read in this thread, I know my answer isn’t going to be too popular. But I’m not going to hide in silence just because I think most of you will be shocked and offended by my opinion.
Not only do individuals have a right to live, societies have a right to live also. If someone were to attack me or one of my loved ones with deadly force, I would have no compunctions in killing them to preserve my own life or the lives of the ones I love. So also for a society. Quite frankly, I’m unconcerned if capital punishment deters anyone else from committing a similar crime. My only concern is to make sure the individual who committed the original crime never gets the opportunity to do so again. It has nothing to do with revenge, it has everything to do with surviving as a society. You don’t want to live in a society where the government can mete out the death penalty; I’m sick and tired of living in a society that doesn’t care one whit for the victims and is only concerned for the rights of the perpetrators.
I was a juror on a murder case. The criminal was a serial killer. He murdered 6 prostitutes after doing drugs with them. He stole their money and their remaining drugs and then disposed of the bodies. I saw photographs of all the crime scenes (which means I got to see photographs of all the bodies; the most horrific being one in a state of 2 days of decomposition in mid-summer heat and humidity). I sat on that jury over 10 years ago and I can still see those photographs like it was yesterday. I will never forget them as long as I live. I got to listen to the testimony of the mothers, fathers and children of those prostitutes. Their families still loved them in spite of everything else; the anguish and pain they were undergoing was painfully evident. The evidence was overwhelming and included DNA at all the crime scenes. We found the criminal guilty of murder 6 times. In this particular state (where I no longer live) it was also the jury’s responsibility to mete out the sentence. We gave the murderer the death penalty 6 times. Afterwards in the judges chambers, it was explained to us the EARLIEST this criminal would be executed would be at least 10 years. The death penalty in this state carried automatic appeals through every level of the court system all the way up to the state supreme court. It would cost the tax payers millions upon millions of dollars for all these appeals to be heard. The judge admitted to us he would be stunned if our original verdict was overturned at any step in the legal process. Sometime after I left that state, the governor suspended capital punishment despite the protestations of the voters.
When there is incontrovertible evidence, which must include DNA, I have no problems with the death penalty. Quite frankly, when there is overwhelming evidence at the crime scene, I don’t think the murderer should be allowed to leave the scene of the crime. “Excuse me Mr. Gacy, please lay down on the floor and turn your head to the side. Excuse me Mr. Dahmer, please lay down on the floor and turn your head to the side.” 37 bodies in the crawl space under your home? Body parts in your freezer and in a pot on your stove? Execute immediately.
As I said above, it has nothing to do with revenge. It has everything to do with survival. Execute and let society move on.
PLEASE don’t pray for me about this particular issue; I will have no problem facing my Maker on Judgement Day and repeating this. If you need to pray for someone, pray for the victims of such heinous crimes and their grieving loved ones. Pray for the perpetrators of such crimes, they need your prayers more than I do. Please don’t take the preceding statement out of context, I am a sinner like any other man and definitely want and need the prayers of others. Just not about this issue. I’ve more than made my peace with my belief.
