I have heard some complain about capital punishment. Well this story shows one reason why we have, and need, capital punishment. In fact I would say we need a swift, but careful, capital punishment. No more sitting in prison for years on end. Any execution should be carried out within five years of the conviction. That is plenty of time to go through the appeals process.
How does this sad story prove we need the death penalty anymore than the hundreds of others like it? It isn't a deterrent, otherwise Texas would probably be free of any murders. The only way I see this justifying it is for vengeance, which is God's alone. Killing murderers is like hitting a child to teach him not to hit others. Counterproductive and just wrong.
Alright, Yes or No:
Should we legislate and govern according to God's law?
If a burglar breaks into a house and carries off a computer to his own home, and the cops have evidence that he was the criminal, should they get a warrant to go into his home to retrieve that computer.... or is it wrong to forcibly enter a home to retrieve an item because you can't commit the same act to show an act is wrong?
==Well there are several reasons. 1) the people who did this killed person therefore they should die, 2) the people who did this killed a cop which shows a lack of respect for the laws of the nation.
==Two points. First whether the death penalty really is deterrent, or not, does not really matter. Justice does not have to be a deterrent, it is a form of punishment. For example people do not enter hell as a deterrent for others. They enter hell to be punished. People are executed, thrown in prison, etc, for punishment and not deterrent purposes. Second the idea that the death penalty is not a deterrent is not a fact. It is a theory. There are those in field who believe the stats show that it is indeed a deterrent. However I would argue that the deterrent factory is secondary to the main purpose. The government should use the sword it has been given (Rom 13:3-6) to bring wrath on those who commit such crimes (Gen 9:6).
==Not really. Deterrents are not 100%. However, again, that should not be the main point of capital punishment. The main point should be justice and punishment.
==Actually God has given the government the ability to be His minister to be "an avenger who brings wrath on the one who practices evil" (Rom 13:4). How does the government do that? One way is by the sword.
==The Word of God disagrees with you as does Justice. The death penalty is not wrong and putting to death those who kill is not counterproductive.
==I agree. In fact if you murder a cop you should get the death penalty automatically (ie.. the judge/jury has no other options). Killing a cop is not only murder it is also one of the worst forms of rebellion against your government. Such a crime should be responded to with the harshest punishment possible.
I do usually agree with MP on a lot of things but on this one I see that Hillclimber is pretty much right on,
with maybe the exception about "We don't rely on God to extract judgment" I believe that God can and does use people as instruments to carry out his will.
If you had your way, over a hundred innocent people would have been executed. They were convicted and imprisoned, condemned to death, but the interminable rounds of appeals gave them enough time that new evidence was found, and they were eventually exonerated.
Granted, several thousand other guilty killers would have more swiftly dealt with.
The question is: "is it worth killing a hundred or so innocent people to more swiftly kill a few thousand guilty ones?"
That's not a rhetorical question. I'd like your opinion.
==No, actually I made the point of saying "I would say we need a swift, but careful, capital punishment".
==After 15 or 20 years there is no need to execute someone. No, they don't need that long. That is simply procrastination. Five years is more than enough. Mainly with modern technology.
==No system is, or can be, perfect. Each case must get careful consideration and the best scientific knowledge should be brought to the table in each and every capital case. If there is any reasonable doubt as to the persons guilt then they should not be executed. However my understanding is that they have this particular event on film.
Some are misusing the word "deterrent".
Of course execution prevents a person from committing any more crimes.
But the idea of deterrence is that the threat of execution would discourage criminals as they thought about the possible consequences of their actions.
I do not see this happening ... although it is difficult to prove a negative.
That is, how would you ever gather statistics on people who would say, "I was gonna kill .... until I thought about being executed"?
Not possible.
But the main point here is that in those states where executions are rather common, it would seem that there are plenty of people who are not deterred from committing crimes.
One might ask the same thing about hell ... is there no fear of being consigned to hell when a person blatantly takes another's life?
Evidently not.
The irreversibility of the death penalty makes it suspect, for me.
And the hope that Christian witness might eventually reach the heart and mind of the killer, even while he is in prison, and bring him the gift of salvation, energizes me against the death penalty.
So do determinate life sentences (that is, those without possibility for parole). And life sentences can be undone in light of new evidence. People who favor the death penalty seem to completely ignore human error.
That does not need a source. It is such a well known fact. A good source is www.google.com
A friend of mine represents people already on death row because of poor representation. How would you like to be represented by a lawyer who is half drunk and paid a few dollars? My friend has told me about cases he has done where he honestly believe the person was truly innocent. If you have ever listened to the new the past few years you have got to know about lawyers who have had political aspirations who flunked in trying a case at the stake of an innocent person's life. The fact is that it costs more to try a death penalty case than to have them in prison for life.
Knowing that what would you propose for a completely flawless unbiased judicial system to get it 100 percent right all of the time?
One does not have to go very far to find out where crime is the highest, teen pregnancy the highest, and poverty is the highest.
My hunch is that they are in the same states as the death penalty. I have a hunch they are the same states that were the last to abolish slavery and segregation too.