"We, the political family of the victim, although one step removed, in our righteous indignation, our need for justice — we, strangers but fellow citizens, fellow survivors, equally vulnerable to viciousness and terror, feel — yes, feel — continually connected to the slain. Compared to the survivors' grief, immediate and intense, enduring sometimes crippling — our righteous indignation, our rage at the callous or sadistic murderer may seem mere commentary. Their healing takes priority."
The quote above is taken from a brilliant OP-ED piece by author Robert Blecker found in today's Hartford Courant. The timely piece is in support of Connecticut's Death Penalty and against a recent repeal bill that once again is being foisted upon the people of this State who have made it very clear in poll after poll that we want to keep the death penalty as our capital punishment.
Most of the coverage in the Courant concerning the death penalty issue has been a mere parroting of the loudest majority opinion within the Connecticut Legislature: This opinion piece is a deviation of what has become the Courants predictably liberal fare. And to be clear, when I use the word "liberal" I am not referring the Democratic party, I am speaking of a dangerous steadily growing, permissive criminal -friendly attitude towards dangerous violent offenders via related sentencing policies, in a State that has one of the most abysmal criminal justice systems in the country.
The quote above is taken from a brilliant OP-ED piece by author Robert Blecker found in today's Hartford Courant. The timely piece is in support of Connecticut's Death Penalty and against a recent repeal bill that once again is being foisted upon the people of this State who have made it very clear in poll after poll that we want to keep the death penalty as our capital punishment.
Most of the coverage in the Courant concerning the death penalty issue has been a mere parroting of the loudest majority opinion within the Connecticut Legislature: This opinion piece is a deviation of what has become the Courants predictably liberal fare. And to be clear, when I use the word "liberal" I am not referring the Democratic party, I am speaking of a dangerous steadily growing, permissive criminal -friendly attitude towards dangerous violent offenders via related sentencing policies, in a State that has one of the most abysmal criminal justice systems in the country.
In this article, Blecker makes vivid, emotionally charged points regarding the folly of repealing the only Sentence in this state that would- be murderers and rapists actually fear. Even a Death Penalty in theory-only, clearly has the power to drive our public defenders to great lengths in attempts to avoid their clients possibly receiving the sentence in a Jury trial: .
Like Joshua Komisarjevsky and Stevn Hayes's attorney's who knew that their clients were caught dead to rights escaping a murder scene, all such immediate offers to plead guilty in exchange for life in prison, will disappear from the judicial landscape in Connectucut if the Death penalty is removed forever from our prosecutors toolboxes. On the rare occasions when a set of crimes are so heinous that a Connecticut State prosecutor refuses a guilty plea, intent on pursuing a death penalty conviction, ( and we do so conservatively in this state to begin with) we the public have watched these lawyers go to ridiculous lengths, in zealous mad scrambles to avoid a sentence that they claim is " not a deterrent."
If the death penalty is in fact abolished and this repeal is voted in within the Senate, we are guaranteed a sideshow seat as these same public defenders vociferously pursue trials in which they fight tooth and nail (at the states expense once again) against the new " cruel and unusual punishment ": Life in prison without the chance of parole".
This is what lawyers do. They push the limits of whatever parameters exist within the confines of a given "justice" system. Indeed our court systems have been taken hostage by amoral defense attorneys who believe they are bound by no limits, bent on "winning" no matter the cost in human suffering.
Do our legislators really believe that if the Death Penalty is taken off the table, the Attorneys representing murderers and predators of every denomination will then reasonably offer their clients up for a life in prison without the c hance of parole? Minus the leverage of even the most impotent death penalty system,(such as Ct has) even situations where the evidence of guilt is overt and abundant, these capital murder cases will all proceed to trial. The proverbial " nothing to lose " will be the Mantra of every child rapist and/or murderer, kidnapper/ killer, as they navigate the new punishment -free State of Connecticut court system, with their frothing at the mouth lawyers in tow. Trial's equal money for lawyers. Do the math.
Our legislators would do well to read this incredibly sensitive and indeed brilliant article below and let it truly penetrate. Although the article is rife with insight and wisdom, two quotes below I found to be especially poignant.
"Although brutal murderers may enjoy long lives in prison while the memory of their suffering victim decays, many abolitionists, especially devout Christians, maintain their moral equilibrium through faith that justice will be done in the hereafter. This belief consoles them. The need for justice may especially incline victims' survivors to those religious beliefs — seeking as they do, solace in the face of suffering. It would console me to believe that my loved one's brutal murderer will someday face ultimate justice. Our secular society, however, separates church and state. We, the people, commit ourselves to human justice in this world — here, now — as if there will be no hereafter."
Robert Blecker's article on Connecticut's Dangerous push to abolish the Death Penalty
2 comments:
Abolish. Now!
I bet that if someone came into your home and raped tortured and murdered your family you would suddenly switch gears and want the death penalty in your State. As well those heinous theoretical crimes that I just presupposed, might not happen at all as a direct result of a real death penalty ie a usable death penalty being in existance in your State. Yes it is a detterent to many people. There is simply no way to quantify how much of a detterent for how many people did not murder because of thier state having a death penalty on the books- especially men that rape and then kill simply to get rid of the witness. The lawyers for convicted murderers ask wasnt the death penalty a detterrent?And when they are told no which is obvious they say see! We told you it wasnt a detterent!" This is patently absurd and if just one murder doesnt happen because one would be murderer was in fear of being eventually executed or in the case of our impotent death penalty, they were afraid of even the notion of being condemned to death langusihing ion death row, without the priveldges that the general violent offenders enjoy in gen pop. This state already is rife with violent crime. Just read your weekly newspaper and look at the amount of serious partner/domestic violence crimes that inadvertanly had historys of other violent crimes and restarining orders until such time as the repeat offender is let losse yet again on some innapropraite plea deal, and he kills his wife his ex wige his girlfiend his ex girlfiend and worse even his own children or anyone who happens to be in the residence or in the way. Connecticut needs to get tougher on violent crime we are awsh with a liberal mindset in our legislature borne of either white upper middle class guilt or minority anger at a percived racism and classism towards the perpetartors of rape murder child abduction rape and murder torture etc.!!! Get rid of injecting your own self interests into the fray of every single discussion or serious issue concerning our failing judicial system. Its time to get tough, Repealing the Dp would send a terrible message to the would be predators who walk among us. Do you really want to be the next victim?
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