US death penalty brought into question

[denem]

Source: ICM News

The US death penalty has been brought into question following the release of a man wrongly imprisoned for 35 years. This brings the total number of exonerations to 140 since 1973 – 10 of which occurred this year.

The issue has been highlighted by the case of US citizen James Bain, who was charged with the kidnap and rape of a nine-year-old boy when he was just 19. Throughout his imprisonment Bain protested his innocence and now, aged 54, he has been cleared and set free following new DNA proof.

Washington’s Death Penalty Information Center (DPIC) has released its 2009 year-end report, which has revealed the number of people sentenced to death in the US has fallen considerably over the last few years – in 2009 there were 106 death sentences, compared with 328 in 1994.

Sadly, one possible reason for the drop in executions is the current economic crisis – for example, the cost of just one execution in Maryland is US$37 million (£23m). According to the DPIC, 11 states have considered abolishing the death sentence because of the high costs involved.

Read more: http://news.icm.ac.uk/world/us-death-penalty-brought-into-question/5049/

---

Ten exonerations this year: Literally lives on the line. Yet, when there is minuscule doubt, I hear 'Why should we pay to keep that animal alive'? Answer: It costs US$30 million to execute them. Reply: 'So, cut the appeals process'. Answer: Now we are back to square one.

[chandler2]

1. Suggestion

Tough on Crime. Tough on the Causes of Crime.

[denem]

2. Tony Blair, 1997.

Look how that turned out.

[seattle_blue]

3. the one that gets me

I've discussed this issue with righties once or twice. I find it completely remarkable when they say..."But we never have executed an innocent person." How a person could come to that conclusion is well beyond my ability of reasoning. But, is in no way surprising.

[denem]

4. The dead don't lodge appeals.

And there are countless examples of dubious decisions. Try looking up the proportion of African Americans on death row then get back to them. Then they can repeat the mantra, or reveal their true colors. How about a copy of 'To Kill a Mockingbird' for Christmas ;)

[FreakinDJ]

5. police officers have been indicted for obstruction of justice

One of the many cases described in the report is that of Rolando Cruz and Alejandro Hernandez, two Illinois men who were sentenced to death in 1985 for the murder of a 10-year-old girl. ''The state continued to prosecute them despite the fact that another man had confessed to the crime and the evidence against them was unreliable,'' the report said.

One of the prosecutors, dismayed by what was happening, resigned. She had managed, despite the politically fashionable tough-on-crime, kill-'em-as-quickly-as-you-can atmosphere, to hang on to the curious belief that it was wrong for the state to press a case against defendants who were not guilty.

Mr. Cruz and Mr. Hernandez benefited from the dogged efforts of an excellent defense team, the support of best-selling author Scott Turow and recent advances in DNA testing. They were exonerated and released from prison in 1995.

Their case is a chilling example of how easily the criminal justice system, without adequate safeguards, can become a force for evil. Three former prosecutors and four police officers have been indicted for obstruction of justice in the case.

http://www.nytimes.com/1997/07/14/opinion/wrongful-death-penalty.html

Virginia has agreed to pay $1.9 million to Earl Washington Jr. for a wrongful conviction that nearly cost the former farm worker his life and tarnished the reputation of the state’s criminal-justice system

Washington, who is mildly retarded, falsely confessed to the June 4, 1982, rape and murder of Rebecca Lynn Williams, a 19-year-old mother of three, in Culpeper. He recanted the confession but was sentenced to death and came within nine days of being executed in 1985.

DNA testing in 2000 led to Washington’s freedom and implicated a convicted rapist, Kenneth Maurice Tinsley. Tinsley, now facing capital-murder charges, was further implicated in 2004 DNA testing conducted as a result of Washington’s suit.

http://www.capitaldefenseweekly.com/blog/?p=1912

[Orrex]

6. We should abolish this barbaric and primitive ritual

the cost of just one execution in Maryland is US$37 million (£23m). According to the DPIC, 11 states have considered abolishing the death sentence because of the high costs involved.

And let this serve as a refutation to anyone who complains about the cost of housing a prisoner on death row for the rest of his life.