I used to be all for it.
If some mad dog kills, kill him back. That's fair and reasonable. Make him or her pay for what they did. It makes sense.
Unfortunately as was most recently displayed by the fact that Kyle Rittenhouse was even brought up on charges should be evidence that the government is not responsible enough to be permitted to take human life.
The fact that Wisconsin does not have a death penalty is immateriel. Thirty eight other states do.
A DA will bring charges on someone for pure political reasons which was demonstrated in the Rittenhouse case. A DA will bring up charges on a person simply for political/public relations reasons if he thinks it will bolster his political career.
Rittenhouse had a pretty good legal team on his side which is fine. However what about some poor slob that's stuck with an incompetent public defender because he can't afford decent legal representation?
He's screwed, blued and tattooed. It's just plain not right.
The office of the District Attorney is often a political stepping stone and people like DAs that take a bite out of crime. People want to feel safer and when a DA can say that he' sent a lot of criminals to the hurt locker people are going to like him. He's made them feel safer and will vote for him when he runs for office later on.
Sending someone to death row becomes a feather in his cap.
Of course Mr. DA doesn't really care, even a little bit, about the innocence or guilt of some poor slob sitting in a cell on death row awaiting a visit with Old Sparky. He got his votes.
It would be one thing if the system was manned by unselfish, honest people seeking truth but it isn't. It's manned by greedy, self-serving politically minded people, some of whom would send their own flesh and blood to the gas chambers in their lust for political power.
The system can jail for life those that are convicted of murder motivated by greed, lust and revenge. If there was a mistake in the conviction they can be released and fairly compensated for their time behind bars, but you can't undo a killing.
Come to think of it, maybe we SHOULD keep the death penalty on the books for yet another class of criminals that are worse than murderers and rapists.
It should be STRICTLY reserved for those in political office, both elected and appointed that commit dishonest acts to the People and
to individuals while they climb the political ladder.
Other than that I don't feel the government is responsible enough to be trusted with being allowed to administer the death penalty.
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As for those that want to know "What about the Beltway snipers or John Wayne Gacy?"
What about them. You can't have your cake and eat it, too. If we let them execute them we have to let them execute anyone else that comes down the pike including innocents.
I don't want that kind of blood on my hands.
(Crooked politicians don't count.)
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