Georgia Inmate Executed After Suicide Attempt

Image by BlatantNews.com via FlickrFor years, I was a staunch supporter of the death penalty.  As for the argument that the death penalty really wasn't a deterrent, I was in agreement with Don Imus.  It would serve as a deterrent to the person who was executed because they would not have the opportunity to kill again.

There was a period of time when I was reading a lot of Buddhist literature, and I tempered my thoughts on the death penalty somewhat, but not completely.  I was sometimes conflicted in my stance that abortion was wrong due to my sanctity of life views, and my support of the death penalty.  I still support the death penalty, especially for the most egregious offenders.

The reason that I bring up the subject of the death penalty is because of an article I saw on The Daily Caller email that I received this morning.  The article was about an execution that took place in Georgia a couple days ago.  The inmate, Brandon Joseph Rhode, was executed, a week after he tried to commit suicide by slashing his arms and throat.  He was rushed to the hospital, stabilized, and retrained so that he could do no further harm to himself.  The original execution date was postponed because of the attempted suicide.

The story brings to mind a couple questions that I have in regards to the entire justice/prison system in regards to capital cases such as Rhode's.  It is not that I question the validity of the execution.  That is the punishment that the state decided to mete out to Rhode's for his heinous crimes, and the punishment he deserves.  My question is this.  If the goal of the state is to kill the perpetrator of the crime, and said perpetrator tries to kill himself, then why should the state take extraordinary means to save the perpetrator only to kill them a week later?

The other question would be those occasions where there is a high profile arrest and they put the suspect on a suicide watch.  Again, if the person decides to kill themselves because they got caught, then why not let them?  Save the state the expense and hassle of a trial and imprisonment.  I don't mean to sound cruel or callous, but seriously, what is the point?  I understand the idea of justice and having their day in court, but if the state wants them dead, and they try to kill themselves, then let them die.

 

Related articles by Zemanta

• Shortage of lethal injection drug halts US executions (telegraph.co.uk)
• Man Set to Be Executed Argues He's Too Brain Dead To Be Killed (abcnews.go.com)
• Suicidal death row inmate appeals Ga. execution (dailycaller.com)

John Allen Muhammad

Image via Wikipedia

Tonight, barring any last minute stays, John Allen Muhammad will be executed by lethal injection in the great commonwealth of Virginia.  The United States Supreme Court has already decided not to hear any appeals on behalf of Muhammad.  I say, "Good riddance."

Seven years ago, Muhammad along with his accomplice Lee Boyd Malvo went on a shooting spree in the DC area.  None of the victims had anything in common, nor did they have any relationship with the pair.  Their only crime was being in the proximity of the killers when they struck. 

The total randomness of the violent acts kept the DC area on edge until the two were caught.  Personally, I remember constantly keeping my head on a swivel trying to observe everything that was going on around me.  I remember stopping to get gas one night and deliberately leaving my car door open to act as a barrier to any potential attack.  The attacks hit real close to home when a child was shot outside of a school here in my home town of Bowie.

Generally speaking, I do not have strong feelings about capital punishment these days.  In years past, I was very much for capital punishment.  On the abortion debate, I have always been pro-life.  When I studied Buddhism, I started to rethink my position on capital punishment.  I questioned how I could call for the sanctity of life in one case but not the other.  Now, I tend to lean towards capital punishment being the exception rather than the rule.

Not so in the case of John Calvin Muhammad.  I can't say it any other way, so excuse me for being so blunt.  I want him dead.  It would be fair to ask why the Muhammad case would draw such a response.  It is because I am first and foremost a father.  Seven years ago, my then 8 year old son, was terrified by the events of the day.  He would run into my bedroom late at night and say to me, "No news, Daddy.  No TV."  With his autism, he was unable to tell us everything he was feeling, but I had never seen his so frightened.  All I know is that anybody that could instill such fear in my child is worthy of my wrath.  If it were within my power, I would pummel him with my bare hands.  So for John Allen Muhammad, good riddance.

Related articles by Zemanta

• Supreme Court won't halt D.C. sniper's execution (cnn.com)
• How the DC snipers hacked an ex-police car to make a killing machine (boingboing.net)
• Families see justice in sniper's execution (msnbc.msn.com)
• 'Beltway sniper' loses bid to halt execution (network.nationalpost.com)