Of life & death
Earlier today, the State of California executed Stanley "Tookie" Williams by lethal injection. Tookie was convicted of four murders, he claims he is innocent, I cannot possible know the truth. The taking of life however does not justify the further taking life. Are we ever going to end killing with more killing? I don’t think so, do you?
Britain abolished the death penalty for murder in 1965, though retained it for treason and one or two military offences, but on 10th December 1999, Britain became a fully abolitionist state. We are proudly one of 69 countries who have completely and totally rejected the brutality of the death penalty. And guess what? The murder rate hasn’t shot up, there isn’t chaos or anarchy. The conviction rate for murder actually went up in the 60s when juries could pass a guilty verdict knowing that the offender would spend life in prison rather than die. Juries understood that by sentencing a person to death they became no better than the offender.
I have never seen an argument in favour of the death penalty that has stood up to even the most gentle of scrutiny. It is a deterrent we are told. Is it? In 2002 there were 891 murders in the death penalty free UK. We have a population somewhere between a quarter and a fifth of the pro death penalty US so you would expect the number of murders there to be about 4,000. In fact there were over 16,100 in 2002. So run that deterrent argument passed me one more time.
What about prison being an easy option. I cannot believe this argument would ever be used by a person who has been inside a prison. I’ve never been inside as a convicted felon, but a few years ago I applied to sit on the Board of Visitors at Reading jail. As part of the selection process I got to spend half a day there. Believe me, prison life is inhuman. An unpleasant odour of stale sweat, urine and disinfectant pervades everything. Every door is locked. It is unlocked in front of you and locked again when you have passed through. There is no privacy, even the toilet cubicles are open. The inmates will spend anything up to 23 hours a day in a 16’ by 10’ cell designed for one person but often contain 2 or 3. The food is atrocious. There is nothing to do; the pain of boredom is etched deeply onto the face of every inmate. You go to bed at night in the knowledge that tomorrow will pass in exactly the same way as today. You have nothing to look forward to but the interminable routine stretching out into the future. You cannot fail to contemplate the reasons why you are there. This is in a UK prison. US prisons have a reputation of being far harder. Tookie is now free from this appalling routine. He was given an anaesthetic prior to the lethal injection so that he wouldn’t feel any pain. He’s also free of the pain of prison life. Free from any feelings of guilt he may have harboured. Free from the bureaucratic appeals process, the lottery of last minute decision making. The people he murdered are still dead. What has been served? Vengeance maybe, retribution possibly. But justice? Certainly not. And if prison is an easy option, why do prisoners commit suicide? Shouldn’t they leap into their beds each night thanking the lord for their soft, cushy life? They don’t. The routine crushes their spirit, destroys their hope.
When any murder is committed a little bit of society is destroyed, a small piece of our civilisation dies. The State of California, the US federal government and anyone who supports the death penalty is as guilty of murder as Tookie.
Britain abolished the death penalty for murder in 1965, though retained it for treason and one or two military offences, but on 10th December 1999, Britain became a fully abolitionist state. We are proudly one of 69 countries who have completely and totally rejected the brutality of the death penalty. And guess what? The murder rate hasn’t shot up, there isn’t chaos or anarchy. The conviction rate for murder actually went up in the 60s when juries could pass a guilty verdict knowing that the offender would spend life in prison rather than die. Juries understood that by sentencing a person to death they became no better than the offender.
I have never seen an argument in favour of the death penalty that has stood up to even the most gentle of scrutiny. It is a deterrent we are told. Is it? In 2002 there were 891 murders in the death penalty free UK. We have a population somewhere between a quarter and a fifth of the pro death penalty US so you would expect the number of murders there to be about 4,000. In fact there were over 16,100 in 2002. So run that deterrent argument passed me one more time.
What about prison being an easy option. I cannot believe this argument would ever be used by a person who has been inside a prison. I’ve never been inside as a convicted felon, but a few years ago I applied to sit on the Board of Visitors at Reading jail. As part of the selection process I got to spend half a day there. Believe me, prison life is inhuman. An unpleasant odour of stale sweat, urine and disinfectant pervades everything. Every door is locked. It is unlocked in front of you and locked again when you have passed through. There is no privacy, even the toilet cubicles are open. The inmates will spend anything up to 23 hours a day in a 16’ by 10’ cell designed for one person but often contain 2 or 3. The food is atrocious. There is nothing to do; the pain of boredom is etched deeply onto the face of every inmate. You go to bed at night in the knowledge that tomorrow will pass in exactly the same way as today. You have nothing to look forward to but the interminable routine stretching out into the future. You cannot fail to contemplate the reasons why you are there. This is in a UK prison. US prisons have a reputation of being far harder. Tookie is now free from this appalling routine. He was given an anaesthetic prior to the lethal injection so that he wouldn’t feel any pain. He’s also free of the pain of prison life. Free from any feelings of guilt he may have harboured. Free from the bureaucratic appeals process, the lottery of last minute decision making. The people he murdered are still dead. What has been served? Vengeance maybe, retribution possibly. But justice? Certainly not. And if prison is an easy option, why do prisoners commit suicide? Shouldn’t they leap into their beds each night thanking the lord for their soft, cushy life? They don’t. The routine crushes their spirit, destroys their hope.
When any murder is committed a little bit of society is destroyed, a small piece of our civilisation dies. The State of California, the US federal government and anyone who supports the death penalty is as guilty of murder as Tookie.
posted by phylos @ 11:23
8 Comments:
I think I'm going to have to agree with you on this one. My mom's sister's son has been in and out of serious jail for over 15 years, and it changed his entire personality radically. (Originally he went in for robbery due to drug abuse) Prison sometimes makes minor offenders true criminals, and that is very sad.
However, I do have a problem with serial killers who torture, rape and kill repeated victims-while putting it on tape! Do you have a position on people like this? I'm not really sure they deserve to live, and maybe in these cases refusal of life is merited. I don't know. I'm still thinking about it.
Hear hear! Californians have blood on their hands this morning...and marshmallow in their brains for electing Arnie in the first place. WTF is that all about?!!! Protesting your innocence cos, guess what, you might be is a reason to stay an execution not continue it!! Jesus! California, you elected Arnie, did you not learn the lesson of Reagan?!! You now have the state government you deserve, enjoy! Tis the equivalent of the UK electing
Ray Winstone as London Mayor - nice thought but really not going to happen
I’m totally unequivocal about this SP. I know there are people who commit crimes way beyond the understanding of those of us who stay the right side of the law, but if we are to agree as a society that the taking of a life is wrong then it is always wrong. A state sanctioned murder is still a murder. Violence begets violence. A nation state must set an example, it must lead not follow the baser elements of society down the road of brutality and hate.
Wow. Was that a bat or am I just nuts? My goodness, that woman packs a whallup! Phylos, can you check the back of my head? Do I still have a brain? Sorry, Claire, but I live in California. I can, therefore, be called a Californian. However, as with the Iraq war, not all of us left our brains checked at the door during voting season. Why the "Hollywood" state prefers actors eludes me...not your average logical choice is it?
Okay, Phylos, I see your point. Can I lay my bough of peace at your doorstep without being called a murderer and be done with it? I don't think I can take another bat. Look at my nose! It's permanently dented...and LOOK at all this blood. That's it. You need a bouncer on your site.
Having just done my civic duty in the form of jury service and sent a guy down for 3 years for child sex abuse, i feel quite strongly that it would be very unfair to put the responsibility of another being's death on 12 members of the public, who really don't want to be there in the 1st place!
Who of us is fit to make that sort of judgement?
The problem with the criminal justice system in this country is more to do with the constant blurring of boundries. There is no clear line drawn in the sand and no clearly adhered to punishment. This has caused a deep rooted lack of respect that has spread like a cancer within our society and has undermined authority to such an extent that our prisons are filling up with people who, had they been given an appropriate (metaphorical) slap at the right moment, may not have crossed that line.
More room and money then for the psycho's that really do need to be locked away for good!
Of course, the British lack of a death sentance is if you disscount the "accidental Execution" on our tube system.
Speaking of which, have you seen the quote from Bliar regarding the 7/7 inquiry?
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/4527104.stm
We don't need an investigation, because the government is going to tell us what happened......
Help, I'm a civilian, get me out of here!!!!
I was working on a rant about the lack of a 7/7 enquiry but my bile duct is currently taking a lay down.
The reason is clear. An enquiry would be expected to ask why the bombings took place. The offical line is of course that they were down to random Muslim extremists and in no way related to the illegal, immoral invasion of Iraq and the tens of thousands of Muslim innocents being slaughtered in the name of freedom and liberation. This cannot be challenged. TB has said it is so. The problems in this ascertion are manifest. In the bin Laden video released just before the US elections last year, the man himself said that he would only target countries involved in the murder of Muslims. Spain was attacked - it was part of the coalition, but not for long. In the grainy video of one of the 7/7 'bombers' released a few weeks ago he speaks of Iraq and the injustice of Western imperialism. But there's no link?
The US and the UK govenments are both rapidly making plans to begin major troop withdrawals next year, despite Iraq being in a hellish chaos of our making.
As I've argued before (http://phylotopian.blogspot.com/2005/08/if-its-hurting-its-working.html) the reaon people resort to terrorism is because it works. Not a popular opinion but it is true. Blair cannot risk people making the connection.
Anyone know where I can get 30 barrels of gunpowder?
Martin - you did jury service! Coooool. I think i've moved house to many times to have ever made the list. That or i'm on the 'other' list. Can you fill me in next week?
As well as the lack of boundaries, there is also a lack of responsibility, parents don't discipline their kids enough (it os other people's kids who are naughty) schools are to scared of being sued, the rozzers don't give a fuck - it's always someone elses problem. As you say it is now society's problem. Shame we can't pack 'em all off to the army or something. Military life did me no harm - apart from the chronic alcoholism in my 20's of course.
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