>>>>>>>>For me its a red herring. The state should never kill .
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>I agree with that...and I think more Americans are believing that each year.
>>>>>>
>>>>>>I don't know about that. There is an anger level in this country that is just below the boiling point.
>>>>>>
>>>>>>Here is the paradox I don't get. A death sentence essentially says you have done the most unforgivable thing you can do, which is take a human life. And for that we are going to kill you.
>>>>>
>>>>>Seems pretty clear. Object lesson, punishment and prophylaxis - not to mention if done properly ( i.e in a very timely fashion) much cheaper than room and board forever.
>>>>
>>>>Cheaper is true. But studies show capital punishment is not a deterrent.
>>>>
>>>>Have you been following the case in Texas?
>>>
>>>
>>>Captial punishment is not a deterrent because the criminals sit on death row for 20+ years, at taxpayer expense, with all the
>>>amenities of a modern 5 start hotel. Why would a career criminal care if they were put on death row? They're going to die of old
>>>age anyhow. Most prisons rival health clubs with TV's, weight rooms, handball and basketball courts, etc. Prison is most certainly
>>>not a deterrent when life in the inside is better than life on the outside.
>>>
>>>IMO, If a person is convicted of a captial crime and sentenced to die, they should get an automatic appeal. That appeal should happen
>>>within 6 months to a year. If the verdict is upheld, they should be executed that day.
>>>
>>>The crime rate would drop overnight, as would prison overcrowding and the costs of incarcerating them.
>>
>>I'm sure you know that it is more expensive to execute a man than imprison him for life, most of that being legal costs. Personally I think capital punishment is barbaric but recognize that it is an issue on which reasonable people can disagree. Just don't say saving money is a reason to do it.
>>
>>Executed that day? Sounds like beheadings in the Arab world. Is that the model we want to follow?
>
>If a person is convicted by a jury of his peers and the conviction is upheld on appeal, why wait for another 20 years. In your other response you mentioned that execution is more expensive than incarceration. The reason it is so is because of all the legal wrangling over someone convicted, twice, of a capital crime.
>
>Do the execution and the case, and all the expenses with it, are closed.

Until the evidence turns up that the wrong person was executed. One of many reasons I'm opposed to the death penalty is that you can't undo it if it turns out you were wrong.

Tamar