NOTE----my next postings will resume on Jan. 15
TEXAS:
Cost of justice is a factor in the death penalty
According to the Texas Department of Criminal Justice, the 1st scheduled
execution of 2013 in the state of Texas will occur Jan. 29, when Kimberly
McCarthy will receive the ultimate form of punishment for robbing and stabbing
to death a 70-year-old woman in Dallas County. Following the murder, McCarthy
also used the deceased victim's credit cards and vehicle.
The Death Penalty Information Center released a report Dec. 18, indicating that
capital punishment in 2012 - as far as new death sentences - was down to its
second-lowest total since the death penalty was reinstated in 1976.
In 2012, there were 43 executions nationwide - 15 in Texas.
On a related note, the Texas Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty - hey, at
least the organization states its agenda in its name - described the state of
Texas as being "haphazard" in how it implements capital punishment,
specifically among individual counties.
Considering the cost of capital punishment (see lawyer fees) is an
ever-escalating factor in the decision whether to seek the death penalty, a
perceived discrepancy in how counties institute the ultimate form of punishment
shouldn't come as a surprise.
Unfortunately, it seems the pursuit of justice is more and more coming down to
dollars and cents - that is just the reality of the situation, which the TCADP
mentions.
There are 4 convicted offenders on death row from the Amarillo metro area
(Potter and Randall counties). 3 have been on death row since 1999 and another
since 1991.
The TCADP also mentions capital punishment may be on the decline because "of a
growing sense that the system is unfair and makes mistakes."
Considering how DNA testing has changed the justice system - when available,
DNA testing can confirm innocence or guilt beyond a reasonable doubt, in most
cases - the possibility of making "mistakes" when it comes to DNA testing
should no longer be a major consideration.
The state of Texas executed 15 offenders in 2012 - 4 were white, 4 were
Hispanic and 7 were black. Since 1982, 46 % of executed offenders in Texas were
white, 37 % were black and 17 % were Hispanic.
Justice should not come down to cost, but there can be no denying that counties
have no other choice but to make the price of justice a major consideration
when it comes to the death penalty.
(source: Editorial, Amarillo Globe-News)
INDIANA:
Shooting shows it's time for review of death penalty laws
So much debate is going on because of the recent shootings. One thing that
needs discussed is better enforcing of our laws. This latest shooting of the
firefighters sickens me. The man who killed them should have been dead long ago
by being sent to the death chamber for the killing of his own grandmother.
One of the biggest problems in our society is that our citizens think - and
rightfully so at times - that there are no consequences for wrongdoing.
Or, if there are, they know it won't be that bad. They can just stick it out,
and they will be out of jail and back to what they did before. It's time to
review our death penalty laws.
Becky Damron, Chesterton
(source: Letter to the Editor, Northwest Indiana Times)
CALIFORNIA:
A case for the death penalty
Gun violence became the main headline, of course, in the unfortunate shootings
of the firemen in Webster, N.Y., by William Spangler. Lost in small print was
the fact that Spangler had previously beaten his own grandmother to death with
a hammer. My guess is that if hammers had been illegal, Spangler would have
killed this poor lady in another manner. (As a youth, I was awfully miffed at
my grandmother for making me watch "The Lawrence Welk Show" weekly, however, I
somehow refrained from doing her harm.)
One thing I know for sure is that had he been executed for that crime,
Spangler's sister and 2 firemen with families would be alive today. It's
ridiculous to think that jail time and psychologists could change a monster
such as this, who later professed his love of killing in writing.
In my mind, the ACLU, bleeding hearts and parole boards have as much blood on
their hands in these cases as the perpetrators. People who care more for
freeing death row inmates at the expense of future murder victims are the sick
ones.
Steve Ledbetter ---- Bakersfield
(source: Letter to the Editor, The Bakersfield California)
USA:
Death penalty is a tool for tyrants
Your recent article with state Rep. Claire Levy questioning the death penalty
addresses a difficult issue, especially in light of recent horrendous mass
murders.
She notes how death penalty prosecutions are so expensive that they undermine
our ability to adequately fund other criminal cases. However, this misses many
bigger problems.
First is the often ignored principle that violence (state executions) begets
more violence. Another is one we rarely dare mention. Simply put, I do not
trust government bureaucrats to decide who shall be put to death. Though not
worried for myself, I am concerned for those most effective in speaking truth
to power and corruption. Our democracy depends on encouraging and not
intimidating the outspoken, perceptive courageous few, not unlike our Founding
Fathers. They were equivalent to "terrorists" for the ruling British
aristocracy.
Many governments use the death penalty on their most hated political
adversaries. The death penalty is the tool of tyrants. Our country already
employs solitary confinement as a form of torture that is effective in
silencing the offender. Such treatment of Private First Class Bradley Manning
is an example, (even if you disagree with his whistle-blowing). The most
effective, permanent means to silence political enemies is the death penalty.
Is it not possible some associated with our government could be so desperate?
The 2012 Defense Authorization Act in its ambiguity could enable indefinite
detention of anyone considered a threat, even U.S. citizens not involved with
armed conflicts. Will more political enemies as supposed terrorists be targeted
for elimination, like an expedited administrative death penalty? Abolishing our
state death penalty would be a symbolic yet significant first step in
protecting our remaining constitutional rights and reducing our potential for
unexpected tyranny.
JOHN C. BOLLINGER----Lafayette
(source: Letter to the Editor, (Boulder, Colo.) Daily Camera)
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