The death penalty as legally justified retribution in the criminal justice system

[BeautifullyChaotic]

We all know that killing is wrong, but it becomes fuzzy when the person to be killed is a killer.

I heard somewhere, I don't know where, that as human beings we strive for peaceful resolution to all problems, but when it comes to monsters, we feel the need to end them to keep the rest of us sane.

I believe this, do you?

 

[thepainwithin]

I've never really thought about this, so I voted for unsure. The death penalty is extremely expensive and takes many, many, many years or appeals, and stays of executions. Studies show that people on death row are more likely to go "insane" in all forms of the word, often acting out violently and attempting suicide because they are unsure of their fate. Sometimes they receive multiple stays of executions, imagine being told you're going to die in a week, then in a week you get word that you have another year.. maybe. Defense attorneys are using this in Europe to show how the death penalty is a form of mental torture and is cruel and unusual.

But the hypocrisy is what gets me. Personally, I would rather see a murderer win a trial because I hate district attorneys, judges and police. DAs don't even know you, they don't even do the investigating, yet their job is to make you look like a murderer and use pictures of you drinking or dressing riskay, and they tell the jury you're a slut, all you do is party and drugs, even though they don't know you... nor have they ever met you intimately. It's the same thing with judges.

Murder is illegal in this country. So is euthanasia. So why is it legal to murder someone by euthanasia? It's like what's happening to me right now... I got arrested for weed, they call me a drug addict, tell me I'm not in control my life, tell me I'm powerless, then they FORCE me to go see a doctor and get on prescription pills... as if I couldn't get addicted simply because they're prescription... You wouldn't give a heroin addict more heroin, so why would you give a "drug addict" prescription drugs in hopes he can straighten his life out?

I still don't know. I'm just playing devil's advocate I guess.

 

[In a Lonely Place]

If you kill,or molest a child then you are not fit to breathe. I think those crimes should be punished by death once definitive,indisputable evidence is present. That's my view which I'm sure will be very unpopular in these pc times but that's how I see it.

 

[flyingdutchmen]

Stuff to think about

 

[Lost]

Killing someone to show killing is wrong... hmmm

 

[In a Lonely Place]

Not to show it's wrong,just to rid the earth of scum that don't belong in a civilised society. Nothing to do with revenge or justice,they just have no place among decent people and it's as simple as that. There's too many people on this planet as it is so let's not keep these scumbags alive,there is no point.

 

[Growing Pains]

I'm still not sure how to post here without opening a can of worms. But I will say that I agree with mark101 a lot. It's not done to show the person that what was done was wrong. Saying that is oversimplifying it. Some people just can't be rehabilitated. Keeping them in prison for life is taking away their life, as well. So, where is the line drawn?

The only thing that has me a bit on the fence is the thought of wrongful convictions. They have, after all, happened.

 

[In a Lonely Place]

I agree and that's why I said the evidence must be overwhelming and indisputable before you end somebodies life. When that is all good I challenge anybody to give me one good reason to keep these monsters alive without mentioning religion or human rights.

 

[BrinkOfExistence]

I think they should get rid of the death penalty.

Firstly i'm pretty sure that not everyone on death row is guilty and once they're dead there's nothing you can do if later they are found innocent.

Secondly the victims (if they survived) and the families of the victims will suffer for the rest of their lives because the crimes committed against them, it seems fitting to have the criminals suffer for the rest of their lives too.

and lastly, when a criminal is imprisoned they are no longer an imminent threat to society and therefore i believe no one has the right to take their life, even soldiers can't kill highly dangerous people who are imprisoned and it's their job to remove those kind of people from this world, so why is it allowed in prisons?

If they are an imminent threat then yes someone has the right to kill them in order to protect others but if they are incapacitated then no (IMO)

 

[BeautifullyChaotic]

That's exactly it Mark, Monsters. Mentally, emotionally, they are not human at all anymore. Sociopaths who are incapable of feeling... regret, remorse, pity... these ideals are foreign to them; they are Monsters in human form.

I don't think that just any killer should be put to death, but a sociopathic killer, or any killer that can never be rehabilitated and returned to society should be. The "crime of passion" killer, the killer who's hand was forced or the killer who accidentally killed can usually be helped and set free to live normal lives, without putting others in danger, but there are those who simply do not feel, and those are the dangerous ones.

 

[In a Lonely Place]

It makes me laugh when people talk about these freaks rights!!
What rights did these sickos afford their victims before they took their life or a child's innocence? Pedophiles and cold blooded murderers have no place on this earth because they will always be a danger to others and that's reason enough to dispatch them.

 

[BrinkOfExistence]

It makes me laugh when people talk about these freaks rights!!
What rights did these sickos afford their victims before they took their life or a child's innocence? Pedophiles and cold blooded murderers have no place on this earth because they will always be a danger to others and that's reason enough to dispatch them.

I'm going to assume you are referingto my post.

I never said they don't have the right to live i said no one has the right to kill them unless they are an immediate threat, so let me understand this these murderers don't have the right to kill anyone yet you have the right to kill the murderers why? because you think it's justifiable or because they deserve it? don't be so naive, it would make you no better than they are.

 

[In a Lonely Place]

Oh I'l always be better than them so don't come that old baloney.I've never killed in cold blood or raped a child,where do you get off worrying about monsters who get their kicks destroying people's lives,if the likes of you put as much energy into worrying about victims of crime as you do the perpetrators we'd have a better society.These sickos lives ain't precious and they deserve no more that to be dispatched in order that they will not destroy more lives in the future.

 

[Terry]

"Thou shalt not kill" and this includes the state....rests my case.

 

[In a Lonely Place]

Well if the people stick to the rules then maybe the state won't have to kill

 

[BrinkOfExistence]

I don't worry about whether murderers should live or die if they were to all die right now i'd have no sympathy for them and yes the world would be a better place without them i'm not denying that, i worry about people like you telling everyone it's ok to kill as long as it's a good cause. What kind of an example is that 'killing is wrong, if you kill someone then we'll kill you' talk about being an oxymoron.

Also what if you sentence an innocent man to death, "sorry we killed your husband/dad but it's worth it because we get it right most of the time"

Oh by the way monsters don't exist just humans who lack intelligence and/or empathy.

Has it ever occured to you that we could learn from these people on why they act the way the do, what triggered it in the first place and perhaps how we can prevent from happening again instead of just sweeping it under the carpet i.e death penalty.

 

[In a Lonely Place]

They are a waste of space,oxygen,food and water.They can teach us what exactly? Haha Next you'll be telling me it's societies fault that these poor little popetts committed these crimes. Somebody who rapes a six month old baby has nothing to teach,they are depraved sickos that need putting down.If you can resist the temptation of having sex with children and killing people then you have nothing to fear.About time someone told it like it is instead of the pc brigade telling everyone how they think it should be.

 

[BeautifullyChaotic]

Monsters do exist, and they are in human form. Any human being without the capacity to feel human feeling is a monster.
Anyone who can remorselessly slaughter another human being is a monster, anyone who can hurt an innocent and never bat an eye, never be sorry for doing so is a monster.

Definition of MONSTER

1
a : an animal or plant of abnormal form or structure
b : one who deviates from normal or acceptable behavior or character
2
: a threatening force
3
a : an animal of strange or terrifying shape
b : one unusually large for its kind
4
: something monstrous; especially : a person of unnatural or extreme ugliness, deformity, wickedness, or cruelty
5
: one that is highly successful

http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/monster

If the evidence is irrefutable, and the offender shows no real signs of remorse it is fitting to end him/her. Not everyone agrees with this, and some sympathize with these monsters, after all, they were created, not born.
It is widely believed that their brain chemistry is different; the differences between a balanced human brain and the brain of a sociopath have been shown through scans and blood testing, but that alone is not enough to make them a killer. Most were abused or neglected throughout their childhood, that, coupled with the abnormal chemistry is what creates serial killers and sociopaths. These people are incapable of rehabilitation. They are typically quite intelligent however, so the notion that they would be unable to escape a prison is no less than silly at best.

 

[BrinkOfExistence]

They can teach us what exactly?.

I clearly stated what they could teach us in my last post are you just reading certain words and responding to that word? and no i don't mean they stand infront of class of students with a white board explaining what they did and why. (I know you like to respond with sarcarsm)

If i turns out they commit crimes because of events that in their own lives then we can't monitor people with similar backgrounds and help them before they commit a crime, the world would be better without murderers and victims rather than without murderers but with victims.

About time someone told it like it is instead of the pc brigade telling everyone how they think it should be

I hope you're not talking about yourself because you're not telling it how it is you're telling it how you think it should be.

 

[BeautifullyChaotic]

I would also like to add, that while I can empathize with the pain of abuse, and understand how and why these people are driven to do the things that they do, it's still a choice they made, to start killing to begin with.
Not only does their death make me sleep a litter better at night, knowing that our society wont tolerate their actions and will put them to death, but I also feel that they NEED to die, after all, a life without feeling is no life at all anyway, and each time we administer that cocktail we are releasing someone from this "lifeless life".
I may not be making any since, it's late and I'm exhausted, rambling at this point, but what I'm trying to say is that the death penalty, if used properly is a tool to help not only the victims loved ones sleep better at night, but most of the rest of us as well, while at the same time ending a miserable life of nothingness.