The Death Penalty

[totoise]

for 100% evidence of guilt, a life for a life .Its too easy to kill someone,and be out of prison in years that you could count on your fingers.an insult to the person whos life was taken away. Yes it is a difficult subject ,controversial,but needs to be addressed once again,prison is no longer the answer,off with their heads i say,but that could be a member of your family!!!!the debate is open!

[ummmm]

A life for a life? So who is going to kill the executer? And then who will kill the person that executed the person that killed the executer?

[Prudie]

It's barbaric and two wrongs don't make a right. Life sentences for life would be an improvement IMO.

[Sharingan]

Two wrongs don't make anything right and sets an example to children that killing people is okay as long a it is state sponsored. Sometimes there are good reasons to murder someone, would you kill everyone guilty of murder or only some people? What would you do to a woman for instance found guity of killing her child's attacker?

[totoise]

UMMMM.Thankyou for your most gracious opinion ,filed accordingly.

[doctordb]

Quite a lot of people who were 100% guilty turned out to be innocent.

[FredPuli43]

How many murderers actually think of the consequences of being caught and convicted ? None, in my experience. It wouldn't matter if they were certain to be hanged (which, incidentally, was far from a certainty, even pre-War) or merely detained for 20 years before being eligible for release. They either think they won't get caught; these are the few; or they are not thinking beyond the moment.

And a large number of domestic murders are followed by suicide, so those killers wouldn't be deterred. Even the serial killers often commit suicide, as the most recent British cases have shown. Why would a serial killer kill himself when cornered, or at all? He has achieved whatever objectives he had. Rather pointless killing himself as well. So who do you think would be deterred? No doubt you think you would, but you're not going to commit a murder, are you?

If it's purely a moral judgment, well, go ahead. But do make sure every murderer is hanged, that none are reprieved on mercy being shown. (That happened a lot in the good old days of the automatic death penalty).

[dustypuss]

I would give the prisoner the choice for themselves I.e. do you want to spend the rest of your life doing the same mundane thing for the rest of your life or do you want to put a quick end to it. The choice is yours. I have known some lifers say they wished they had been put to death rather than spend years behind bars. Only the prisoner knows if they are 100% guilty or not

[Brinjal]

Some murders are horrible sadistic in which the victims undergo prolonged torture and suffering and I get all angry and think yes death penalty but would I be prepared to carry out the execution? I dont think so therefore it is not moral for me to expect someone else to carry out the sentence. But in those circumstances life should mean just that" life."

[Canary42]

//Prison is no longer the answer///

And when ever was it ?

[nungate]

Innocent people have been executed for murder so I am not in favour of the death penalty. I am in favour of a life sentence being just that. Prison for the natural span of the murderer's life. No parole, just them in their cell with their conscience (assuming they have one) The death penalty gives them a quick out. Life should mean life.

[bednobs]

even confessions sometimesturn out to be false. How can there ever be 100% proof

[ummmm]

Yes, like the Birmingham 6 and the Guildford 4. They confessed, in the end!

[wimp]

A life for a life is to soft.Apart from that it wouldn't get through parliament!stypuss..You are saying it is a mundane life for them,no problem there!Put them in a chain gang working on the roads or even better an open mine breaking stones for 12 hours a day,and dont give me anything about THEIR human rights! they lost that when the crime was committed.After a 12 hour shift breaking stones they'd be to tired to even work out the meaning of the word mundane!PS, when i say chain gang i do mean in chains!!

[Ric.ror]

I agree with Ummm although when I read about cases such as Baby P I am always glad I don't have the final say as I would be tempted then

[Smowball]

Is there a right answer? All I do know is that prisons in general are far too cushy, and yes I do know as my ex was a prison officer. Its a laugh the way some of them are run - tv's,gaming,pool,snooker.......

[Sharingan]

I would disagree about prison being cushy Smowball and yes I do know because my father is an ex prisoner- everything is subjective when you take anecdotal evidence and opinion as writ.

[society]

Raping kids - death penalty for the rapist. I don't care how mentally dysfunctional the perpetrator is.

[ChillDoubt]

With the advent of modern forensic techniques and DNA evidence, in cases of murder, child abduction and child rape/murder the penalty ought to be death by lethal injection.
The likes of Ian Huntley and Roy Whiting deserve the death penalty.
Year upon year we see our public services, the Police, NHS, Armed Forces etc face stark decisions about where cuts are to be made, usually to the detriment of the ordinary, tax-paying public. Yet the Prison Service and judicial system will always have enough money to house and feed the likes of Huntley et al for the rest of their days at massive expense.
Many say that we don't execute people in a civilised society. Then why are such horrific crimes committed in such a 'civilised' society?
Because there is no deterrent.
As dustypuss says, some should be given the option, to be taken within 6 months of sentence being passed.
But Huntley and Whiting should not be allowed such an option, the money saved by their execution could save many a sick child, give hope to a cancer patient, help to a lonely pensioner or mean more Police on the streets.

Everyone suffers from finances being curtailed, prisoners deserving of a death sentence should be no different.

[society]

ChillDoubt, agree with you 100%.

[DaisyNonna]

If the death penalty still existed in this country how would you react to being on jury service knowing that if you voted guilty it would mean the death of another human being.