Do you support the death penalty?

[J_Dee]

High court reimposes Boston Marathon bomber’s death sentence

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court has reinstated the death sentence for convicted Boston Marathon bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev.

The justices, by a 6-3 vote Friday, agreed with the Biden administration’s arguments that a federal appeals court was wrong to throw out the sentence of death a jury imposed on Tsarnaev for his role in the bombing that killed three people near the finish line of the marathon in 2013.

The basic pros and cons of the death penalty:

https://deathpenalty.procon.org/

Proponents of the death penalty say it is an important tool for preserving law and order, deters crime, and costs less than life imprisonment. They argue that retribution or “an eye for an eye” honors the victim, helps console grieving families, and ensures that the perpetrators of heinous crimes never have an opportunity to cause future tragedy.

Opponents of capital punishment say it has no deterrent effect on crime, wrongly gives governments the power to take human life, and perpetuates social injustices by disproportionately targeting people of color (racist) and people who cannot afford good attorneys (classist). They say lifetime jail sentences are a more severe and less expensive punishment than death.

Which do you agree with?

I hope prosecutors expedite Tsarnaev's sentence.

 

[WildcatFan1982]

In general no I am against the death penalty. However there are some people (anyone that hurts kids for example) that I'm willing to make an exception for.

 

[jameslee32]

👍

 

[MdWIldcat55]

Not for me personally, but for some of you, for sure.

 

[BlueRaider22]

If there's no doubt, yes.

 

[gamecockcat]

I am reservedly for the death penalty. I say 'reservedly' because rich (and mostly white) violent criminals almost never receive the death penalty. I don't think the system is rigged due to racism but it's definitely rigged in favor of those who can hire top flight attorneys vs those who can't (and it's the same in every court system, not just criminal. The side that has the best attorneys generally win). If Bill Gates were a serial killer, no way would he ever face the death penalty as he's got the money to hire the very best attorneys. Sadly, many of those who receive the death penalty, while almost assuredly deserving their punishment, don't have the benefit of a great legal team. OJ Simpson should have been convicted and we saw what an all-star defense team at great cost accomplished for him.

If justice was applied equally and not dependent on the accused's ability to hire excellent attorneys, I'd be more for it. Don't think there's any way to solve this problem. The rich always receive a different brand of justice than the rest of us. Way too many examples to cite.

 

[WildcatfaninOhio]

I answered yes.

However…I do have concerns about how this sentence is imposed. I think the death penalty should be administered very sparingly, and reserved only for the most heinous of crimes. And the standards for state prosecutors, juries and judges to agree on capital punishment should be extremely high.

 

[Ed323232]

We watch a show called Court Cam. It basically details a crime someone committed then shows the court sentencing. Last one we watched a guy called his girlfriend, who he was in a custody battle with, at her job and ask her to come to the parking lot to talk. He then poured gas on her and lit her on fire. She burned for 78 seconds before some got to her to help. She didn’t die but was in a coma for 30 days and basically lives in constant pain. I truly believe I could flip the switch personally on this guy. Someone like that does not deserve to live.

 

[Freetaxreturn]

Have always supported the death penalty ☠️🍺

 

[CatsFanGG24]

If there's no doubt, for sure.

If it's like the Charleston church shooter, Waukesha massacre killer, Boston bomber - it should be within the week of the offense.

 

[funKYcat75]

Need a "Yes/No, but ..." option. Can't really explain it, but ending a life on purpose is a tough one. That being said, some folks gotta go. Also, if you're a death row inmate and you want to check out early, you should be able to if you ask.

 

[WildcatFan1982]

one thing I can't stand however, are people that complain that lethal injection is 'cruel' because the drugs don't always work right. Gotta wonder how much fun the victims had being murdered to do a comparison.

 

[Ron Mehico]

Absolutely if they no doubt did a heinous crime. But the way we do it is so touching dumb. Just shoot the guy in the head (basically a firing squad) after sentencing. Not the ridiculous years on death row then injection, I mean WTF are we doing with that nonsense? People overthink it, at the end of the day some people just need to be gone from society.

 

[mdlUK.1]

Yes! several years ago during one of the many debates on this issue, the proponent’s described a case where 2 young men took a 10 year old girl out in the woods and repeatedly raped her. She was crying for her momma the whole time. Once they were finished with her, the geniuses decided that they couldn’t just let her go because she would tell. So they had to kill her.

Now, there are several horrible ways to kill someone but they found one of the worst, imho. They took a stick, wrapped her panties around the end and shoved it down her throat. That had to be a slow and terrible way to die.

So, not only am I for the death penalty, I think they should have to die in the same fashion!

 

[Ron Mehico]

Yes! several years ago during one of the many debates on this issue, the proponent’s described a case where 2 young men took a 10 year old girl out in the woods and repeatedly raped her. She was crying for her momma the whole time. Once they were finished with her, the geniuses decided that they couldn’t just let her go because she would tell. So they had to kill her.

Now, there are several horrible ways to kill someone but they found one of the worst, imho. They took a stick, wrapped her panties around the end and shoved it down her throat. That had to be a slow and terrible way to die.

So, not only am I for the death penalty, I think they should have to die in the same fashion!

There is nothing wrong with giving the dad or mom a gun and just having them shoot the guys in the head on the spot. What’s the argument against that?

 

[ukcatz12]

Against. It must either exist or it doesn't, you can't really have a death penalty only if you're 100% sure the accused is guilty. The court system is supposed to tell us who is guilty and not guilty. And the court system is never 100% accurate, which means if the death penalty exists then innocent people will inevitably be put to death. Some estimates say 4% of people on death row are innocent and people on death row get exonerated all the time. Can't have a system where the state is legally killing innocent people. For the fiscally conservative among us, the death penalty is also more expensive than life in prison.

 

[MegaBlue05]

I support it in the cases of heinous crimes (murder, rape, pedophilia) with indisputable evidence such as clear, conclusive video or confirmed DNA evidence.

 

[BlueBallz]

I am reservedly for the death penalty. I say 'reservedly' because rich (and mostly white) violent criminals almost never receive the death penalty. I don't think the system is rigged due to racism but it's definitely rigged in favor of those who can hire top flight attorneys vs those who can't (and it's the same in every court system, not just criminal. The side that has the best attorneys generally win). If Bill Gates were a serial killer, no way would he ever face the death penalty as he's got the money to hire the very best attorneys. Sadly, many of those who receive the death penalty, while almost assuredly deserving their punishment, don't have the benefit of a great legal team. OJ Simpson should have been convicted and we saw what an all-star defense team at great cost accomplished for him.

If justice was applied equally and not dependent on the accused's ability to hire excellent attorneys, I'd be more for it. Don't think there's any way to solve this problem. The rich always receive a different brand of justice than the rest of us. Way too many examples to cite.

Technically, there are more whites on death row than blacks, but it's about the same percentage wise.

https://deathpenaltyinfo.org/death-row/overview/demographics

 

[BlueBallz]

yes, for it, not so much as a deterrant because I don't believe it is, more for victim justice.

 

[WildcatFan1982]

Yes! several years ago during one of the many debates on this issue, the proponent’s described a case where 2 young men took a 10 year old girl out in the woods and repeatedly raped her. She was crying for her momma the whole time. Once they were finished with her, the geniuses decided that they couldn’t just let her go because she would tell. So they had to kill her.

Now, there are several horrible ways to kill someone but they found one of the worst, imho. They took a stick, wrapped her panties around the end and shoved it down her throat. That had to be a slow and terrible way to die.

So, not only am I for the death penalty, I think they should have to die in the same fashion!

See that would be an example where I'm fine with the death penalty.

 

[Rebelfreedomeagle]

I personally have a problem with the death penalty because our government is supposed to be subservient, even though the courts represent the will of society. Besides, as a deterrent it’s a hundred percent effective for that one person but has little influence on others.

 

[funKYcat75]

Technically, there are more whites on death row than blacks, but it's about the same percentage wise.

https://deathpenaltyinfo.org/death-row/overview/demographics

Ummmm, who wants to tell him?

 

[Nbacats]

In general no I am against the death penalty. However there are some people (anyone that hurts kids for example) that I'm willing to make an exception for.

Same here, basically.

 

[Nbacats]

Absolutely if they no doubt did a heinous crime. But the way we do it is so touching dumb. Just shoot the guy in the head (basically a firing squad) after sentencing. Not the ridiculous years on death row then injection, I mean WTF are we doing with that nonsense? People overthink it, at the end of the day some people just need to be gone from society.

People have appeal rights my guy.

 

[Nbacats]

Against. It must either exist or it doesn't, you can't really have a death penalty only if you're 100% sure the accused is guilty. The court system is supposed to tell us who is guilty and not guilty. And the court system is never 100% accurate, which means if the death penalty exists then innocent people will inevitably be put to death. Some estimates say 4% of people on death row are innocent and people on death row get exonerated all the time. Can't have a system where the state is legally killing innocent people. For the fiscally conservative among us, the death penalty is also more expensive than life in prison.

I basically lean towards this, but I'm good with this Boston Bomber guy getting the axe.

 

[Nbacats]

Technically, there are more whites on death row than blacks, but it's about the same percentage wise.

https://deathpenaltyinfo.org/death-row/overview/demographics

You're not exactly disproving his point here given how much larger the US white population is compared to the black population...

 

[Nbacats]

Also, if you're a Christian and are for the death penalty, why do you believe in something that is in open defiance to God?

 

[gamecockcat]

Technically, there are more whites on death row than blacks, but it's about the same percentage wise.

https://deathpenaltyinfo.org/death-row/overview/demographics

I would love to see socio-economic demographics of death row inhabitants. Has to be very skewed towards bottom end of socio-economic scale, one would think.

 

[Ron Mehico]

People have appeal rights my guy.

Did you read the first sentence of what I wrote? “If they no doubt did it”

 

[BlueBallz]

I would love to see socio-economic demographics of death row inhabitants. Has to be very skewed towards bottom end of socio-economic scale, one would think.

It would be an interesting number to see. I don't doubt that that the large majority are in that population.

 

[ukcatz12]

Did you read the first sentence of what I wrote? “If they no doubt did it”

But in reality this is impossible to do. The justice system is already supposed to only convict people when there is no [reasonable] doubt they did it. So the real question becomes does the injustice of innocent people being put to death outweigh the supposed justice of only guilty people being put to death?

 

[Tskware]

Most lawyers and judges will tell you that it is not worth all the effort, with the years and years of appeals, massive cost of death penalty cases vs. life w/o parole, etc. No question that for the most part, it is the poor and uneducated on death row. And I fully understand all that, especially given that almost no one in most states actually ever gets executed. There are a handful of outliers, but for most states, actual executions are few and far between.

But as for me personally, there are some crimes, e.g., McVeigh federal building bombing, Ted Bundy, 911 bombers, if any of them had lived, where I happen to believe that there really is not any other suitable penalty.

 

[Ron Mehico]

But in reality this is impossible to do. The justice system is already supposed to only convict people when there is no [reasonable] doubt they did it. So the real question becomes does the injustice of innocent people being put to death outweigh the supposed justice of only guilty people being put to death?

The real question is should the death penalty exist. My answer is if they are guilty of a horrible crime, yes. You can feel free to start talking like a lawyer and confuse things and add exceptions to the hypothetical question and caveats and make this simple question as convoluted and exhausting as possible but I’m sticking with my answer.

 

[BlueRaider22]

But in reality this is impossible to do. The justice system is already supposed to only convict people when there is no [reasonable] doubt they did it. So the real question becomes does the injustice of innocent people being put to death outweigh the supposed justice of only guilty people being put to death?

It's not impossible. See Jeffrey Dahmer. He admitted to everything and the evidence was insane.

For sure though, there are a very small percentage that might be wrongly sentenced.


But this goes back to what most have been saying, "If there isn't a doubt.....then yes,...."

 

[Tskware]

It's not impossible. See Jeffrey Dahmer. He admitted to everything and the evidence was insane.

For sure though, there are a very small percentage that might be wrongly sentenced.


But this goes back to what most have been saying, "If there isn't a doubt.....then yes,...."

Not to quibble with your point, but I think the evidence was that Dahmer was insane . . .

[He was later murdered in prison]

 

[BlueRaider22]

Not to quibble with your point, but I think the evidence was that Dahmer was insane . . .

[He was later murdered in prison]

You didn't quibble. You supported it. Thx.

 

[JoeSwag]

I am reservedly for the death penalty. I say 'reservedly' because rich (and mostly white) violent criminals almost never receive the death penalty. I don't think the system is rigged due to racism but it's definitely rigged in favor of those who can hire top flight attorneys vs those who can't (and it's the same in every court system, not just criminal. The side that has the best attorneys generally win). If Bill Gates were a serial killer, no way would he ever face the death penalty as he's got the money to hire the very best attorneys. Sadly, many of those who receive the death penalty, while almost assuredly deserving their punishment, don't have the benefit of a great legal team. OJ Simpson should have been convicted and we saw what an all-star defense team at great cost accomplished for him.

If justice was applied equally and not dependent on the accused's ability to hire excellent attorneys, I'd be more for it. Don't think there's any way to solve this problem. The rich always receive a different brand of justice than the rest of us. Way too many examples to cite.

I don't think anyone can deny the two-tier justice system when someone has money versus those who do not. Look at how politicians and celebs won't face the justice that the average person does. I think it's a class system more than a race system.

Honestly, I think most of the public are absolute morons and I would be terrified to leave my fate up to 12 dumb people who fall for the dumbest shit. What also is terrifying and what I have seen a lot in Dateline episodes is a prosecution will knowingly pursue a case or withhold evidence they know would exonerate someone. Pretty messed up that they seek a win instead of "Did I get the right guy?"

When there is without a doubt undeniable evidence, video, etc. of the most heinous shit (like torture, killing kids, etc), I think the death penalty should occur and it shouldn't take 20 years to get to.

 

[starchief5]

In cases where the murder was PREMEDITATED and there is absolutely NO DOUBT of the person's guilt, yes. And it should be done SOON after they are found guilty, when the HORROR of what they did is still fresh in the public's mind. Maybe not like in China (so I've heard) where they march them out back after court and shoot them, but not 20-25 years later when almost everybody has forgotten about the case except the victim's family.

That would be a possible deterrent but the way it is done now certainly is not.

 

[BlueRaider22]

In cases where the murder was PREMEDITATED and there is absolutely NO DOUBT of the person's guilt, yes. And it should be done SOON after they are found guilty, when the HORROR of what they did is still fresh in the public's mind. Maybe not like in China (so I've heard) where they march them out back after court and shoot them, but not 20-25 years later when almost everybody has forgotten about the case except the victim's family.

That would be a possible deterrent but the way it is done now certainly is not.

I agree that if it’s without a doubt, then it should be done soon. I wonder how much of a drain on society it is to care for someone like you mentioned for 20-30+ yrs...

 

[berniecarbo]

I don't think anyone can deny the two-tier justice system when someone has money versus those who do not. Look at how politicians and celebs won't face the justice that the average person does. I think it's a class system more than a race system.

Honestly, I think most of the public are absolute morons and I would be terrified to leave my fate up to 12 dumb people who fall for the dumbest shit. What also is terrifying and what I have seen a lot in Dateline episodes is a prosecution will knowingly pursue a case or withhold evidence they know would exonerate someone. Pretty messed up that they seek a win instead of "Did I get the right guy?"

When there is without a doubt undeniable evidence, video, etc. of the most heinous shit (like torture, killing kids, etc), I think the death penalty should occur and it shouldn't take 20 years to get to.

I voted yes. My story is not a death penalty case, but does show juries don't always know what they are doing and lawyers don't either. My daughter was on a jury with a lawsuit involving a bank and a man and wife. It involved a construction project. The jury immediately voted 11 to 1 for the bank. The key to the lawsuit was over osha rules. It just so happened my daughter has a degree in osha and worked for a major insurance company and her job was helping clients make sure they were following osha rules. After she explained the procedures to her jury mates, they voted 12 to 0 for the couple. What are the odds a osha expert just happened to be on the jury? The verdict could easily have been wrong.