From SF Chronicle:
For the third time in 40 years, Californians will likely vote in November on the death penalty, a practice that has had at least as much impact on the state’s politics as on its institutions of crime and punishment.
Opponents of capital punishment said Thursday they were submitting 800,000 signatures on petitions for an initiative to close the nation’s largest Death Row, which has 725 condemned prisoners. The measure needs 504,760 valid signatures to make the ballot.
“California voters are ready to replace the death penalty with life in prison with no chance of parole,” declared Jeanne Woodford, who oversaw four executions as warden of San Quentin State Prison. She now heads the anti-capital-punishment group Death Penalty Focus.
Photo courtesy of RambergMediaImages, flickr
We do not need to get rid of the death penalty, we need to reduce the costs of the death penalty. One appeal is all the murderer should get. The costs of prisons is ridiculous and should be contained. Just one of the many reasons our state is bankrupt.
Again your government listening to the “Liberals” saying “we care too much for the human life in prison to exicute them, but it’s ok to kill an unborn child”
These hypocrites make me sick to think they are in this world with me. But thats your Liberal factories (Higher learning Shools) product.
Kill a cop and see how fast they want to execute you.
“California voters are ready to replace the death penalty with life in prison with no chance of parole,” declared Jeanne Woodford, who oversaw four executions as warden of San Quentin State Prison. She now heads the anti-capital-punishment group Death Penalty Focus.
I dont mind servants of the people being less than comfortable with due-process public execution. It shows a moral appreciation of mortality and human fallibility. Still, that darned old,”WILL OF THE PEOPLE” thing must really make Jeanne Woodfords’ heart bleed. The sentence was not simply all about her participation, was it?
Sure its a political cliche. It has, like classic movies, TV reruns, and wine, aged with time. My favorite TV rerun on this theme (see YouTube) was when the then democrat actor, Ronald Reagan, faced as a judge, a reprieved man he passed sentence on. The kidnapper intended to impose his condemned reality on the legally-assured judge before ultimately killing Reagans character. The judge survived, but the pained look on the judges face as he later sentenced a future accused man to death really hit the right balance.
I suspect the people of California sure are sick to death of revisiting Governor Pat Browns 1950s death penalty hesitation in the Caroll Chessman reprieve…… that was executed anyway.
Aged like fine wine…………..
I support the death penalty but gee, it’s never used here anyway! Criminals end up on death row forever! Texas understands how this works.
If the death penalty were to actually be used as designed it would decrease crime. But as it happens now when people usually die of natural causes before the death penalty is actually applied, there is no reason to fear the death penalty. I say, get rid of all the delays for putting criminals to sleep for good. Then you would not be seeing 700 people on death row waiting for natural disease to kill them and the cost would be much lower.
Why is it going unenforced? Over 700 murderers now populate Death Row. Enough to re-name it
Death Village. Stop the unending appeals…stop the ACLU’s lawsuits over everything from “cruel
and unusual punishment” false claims to his lawyers goofed, nonsense. Murder victims matter.
The majority supports it…now the minority should get lost. Vote No.
The people experiencing cruel and unusual punishment are the loved ones of the victims who suffer knowing that the people who killed them are getting operations for hang nails and heart bypass operations. Oh yes and don’t forget those transgender criminals who want sex change operations, and because of the ALCU will probably be getting them.
“Oh yes and don’t forget those transgender criminals who want sex change operations, and because of the ALCU will probably be getting them.”
The late executed murderer James Earl Ray with “C” cup enhancements! Only in a socialist Utopia.