are we punishing murderers too much?

Post Reply New Topic

I get that killing people, ethically and theologically, is bad for human society. I get it, but what I don't get is why aren't we taking our time to understand the circumstances that led that person to kill that other individual. Was the one who got murdered a criminal or had committed a crime before? And if so wouldn't it be better to reward the murderer money for killing a person that would otherwise be an even bigger bane to human society? Why is that most people (especially in the United States) have the assumption 'if X person kills someone, he/she must go to jail/have death penalty because murder and murder is bad'? Does redemption truly exist within the majority of the justice systems anymore?

I know that's a lot of questions, but here's what I'm trying to say; what is the world's justice systems hope to gain by torturing individuals? I mean you're putting a guy/girl inside what is ultimately real-life hell and somehow you expect him/her to redeem him/herself? C'mon! That sounds like the fanciest way of having revenge!

And as far as I'm concerned evil is infectious; you can't justify evil with evil, the same way you can't justify someone who brought someone hell by sending him/her to hell. It's as simple and illogical as that.

What do you guys think?

Even if we presume that all of them are 100% guilty, which is really hard to believe, i don't think it's worth it to execute them.

First, even if they absolutely deserve to die, there are usually people who care about them who are blameless. Particularly if they have children. A kid's parent might be a worthless piece of crap, but a kid has a right to communicate with and see that worthless piece of crap. I figure a lot of murderers have parents and siblings too.

Even if they are completely alone in the world, why should we, as the people, have to bear the weight of killing them.

As for life behind bars, and how we run our prisons, I figure norway has the right idea. 21 year maximum sentence, treat people like human beings, stress the importance of finding a way to live outside in the civilized world.

Once a person is convicted of willful homicide due to overwhelming evidence, that person's execution should occur quickly, quietly, and without fanfare.

Once a person is dead, it takes only a short amount of time to cremate the body and scatter the ashes in an undisclosed location.

HOWEVER, if there is any doubt that the person is guilty of murder, then the sentence should be life imprisonment. By 'guilty', I mean that the person acted specifically to end the life of the victim, and planned for the murder ahead of time. And by 'doubt', I mean ...

What if there is no body? What if there are no witnesses? What if the murder weapon can not be found? What if there is no evidence whatsoever that the alleged murderer had the means, the motive, and the opportunity to commit the crime?

Lacking evidence that a crime was even committed, the suspect should go free, even if "everybody knows" that the suspect hated the victim.

No, sorry, forgiveness doesn't work when you're a murderer (and even more so if you are a mass murderer).

Letting murderers go free is an insane idea, and that's putting it nicely.

We can either allow the execution of murderers and become a nation of executioners by proxy, or allow murderers to be locked away for life and become a nation of gay dungeon masters by proxy.

Which do you prefer?

We have to have consequences for wrong actions. I wouldn't want my murderer to go free because of some abstract moral compunction. I don't deserve to die for no reason.

I can forgive....but I believe people should be punished for wrong actions.

We need to have deterrence. Without it, people will try to take advantage of others at will.

I don't understand revenge.

The only reason I can see to put someone in prison for life is because it is unsafe to let them out.

If someone has been truly rehabilitated, what reason is there to keep them in prison or execute them?

I see Prison as more of a Social Quarantine than for punishment. I think punishing them or making their life suck in a cell is kind of pointless.

It also seems odd to me to execute them, because then you have to ask someone else to become a killer in a way. I don't think the state should have to ask another human being to assume the role of executioner.

85% of criminal justice phd's agree that the death penalty is not a deterrent. it is applied in a racist way. innocent people have been executed. that is three of the good reasons to be rid of it. i can't go as far as Norway and say that everyone deserves to get out someday. some folks are just too dangerous to let out.