Hang ‘em High (02/02/2011)

The issue inevitably comes up. We choose a side; we either support it, or we condemn it. Supporters cite phrases like “an eye for an eye,” and those who are against remind us that humans are fallible, and innocent people have been killed. This is the quandary of state sanctioned murder – the death penalty – the ultimate punishment!

35 of our states still have the death penalty. Since 1976, 1234 people have been murdered by the state, and 3,261 are waiting to meet their demise. Inmates typically spend more than 10 years on death row before execution; some have been waiting more than 20 years.

Texas shows no mercy when it comes to killing the convicted. It has executed 464 persons since 1976, the highest number in the country. Additionally, Texas has another 337 waiting in the wings. Even though Texas has the ability to sentence those found guilty of murder to life without parole, they often choose to execute them, even going so far as to lethally inject individuals who do not physically commit a murder.

What about here in the Peach State? Georgia ranks among the top six states with a total of 48 executions since 1976, two this past year, and we have another 106 prisoners waiting on death row. But Georgia pales in comparison to Texas. Have we here in Georgia become timid in dispensing justice? Are we trying to prevent Georgia on My Mind from taking on an entirely new meaning?

The application of the death penalty is atrociously biased, most notably along racial lines. Out of 261 instances of interracial murders, 15 white defendants were executed when the victim was black, while 246 black defendants were executed when the victim was white. In 2001 researchers at the University of North Carolina found that in their state the chances of receiving the death penalty rose 3.5 times among black defendants when the victim was white.

Thanks to advances in DNA and other types of forensic evidence, the innocent are being exonerated of murder convictions, some of whom were merely one step away from death. Would it not serve us better to admit that we make mistakes, and there’s always a chance of killing the innocent? Or have we become so inhumane that we believe it is acceptable to kill an innocent person occasionally in order to continuing killing the guilty?

With the recent shooting of U.S. Representative Gabrielle Giffords, along with deaths of six others, the right-wing conservatives are already calling for Jared Loughner to be executed, with one particular radio personality going so far as to say Loughner does not even deserve to be examined for mental competency. Do any of us believe Loughner is sane? The shootings were heinous and Lounghner should be punished if found guilty by a court of law, but killing him does not accomplishes this goal.

Loungher’s execution would bring none of those murdered back to life, nor would it compensate the injured. The lengthy appeals process involved in executing him would cost the taxpayer more than it would to simply lock him up and throw away key. As for Loughner’s execution being a deterrent against future acts, allow me to share what Albert Camus said about deterrence.

In Camus’ Reflections on the Guillotine, he wrote that if we as a society believe the death penalty truly deters people from taking another’s life, then we should be performing these executions in public view. He tells us that the death penalty cannot possibly be a deterrent if no one actually sees it administered.

Today, we hide the procedure in small, secluded rooms, tucked deep within the confines of a prison, with only a small group of people present to witness the deed. We have even made it less nauseating, doing away with messy gas chambers and those crackling, popping electric chairs. Now, we quietly inject chemicals into the condemned’s body. (This is after the truly curious act of swabbing their arm with alcohol before inserting the needle.) Then, we let the poisons flow until the person is dead. The entire process is nice and clean.

Capital punishment is nothing more than an emotionally charged blood-feast born of a vigilante mindset. It is time for us to move forward and admit that state sponsored murder is the epitome of cruel and unusual punishment, and that the wrong person could very well be killed for a crime he or she did not commit.

© 2011 Don Lovell
© 2011 The West Georgian