What do you think the sentence should be for murder?

In a conversation sparked by a murder by two 15 year olds.

Very old antiquated evidence. Totally irrelevant nowdays

For those heinous crimes, ie child killers, sadists and serial killers. Death penalty after exactly 5 years from sentence - if irrefutable evidence. 5 years to know they are going to die.
Yes Id happily carry it out
Monsters just need to be put down and then the risk of them is zero

Tell that to Derek Bentley’s family, or Ruth Eliss’

Prison is meant to be for rehabilitation so logically putting someone away for actual life (until they die) goes against that. However, if someone has committed murder then their victim has lost their life so why should the offender have a chance to do what their victim didn’t. It is very complex really. We have prison to change peoples behaviour, reform and rehabilitation but, take Brianna for example, she will never go to uni, have a career, get married, have kids and the people who killed her will likely be out in time to achieve at least some of that. I don’t think Scarlett will be out at the 22 year point though.

But the death penalty is murdering someone else. How can we say murder is wrong - so to prove that we murder you. And then who is going to kill the person who then killed the convicted murderer... it makes zero sense, morally or otherwise.

Either murdering someone is wrong or it isn't.

So here are mumsnetters who time and time again state they have no problem with the death penalty

They would happily administer an injection/gas/hang these people themselves

Would they? They wouldn't even make it into the prison let alone anything else

Cavalier keyboard warriors!

You do know that there have been a lot of miscarriages of justice where people were later found innocent don't you? How would you give those lives back?

The death penalty is barbaric.

Bad people kill other people against their will.

As for sentencing, every case should be judged on its merit and I think approx 20 year minimum sentence and WLO for the greatest affronts to society is about right.

Justice isn't about exacting society's vengeance

Minimum sentence should be at least 30 years. Enough time for them to think about what they've really done.

Death penalty for me as I’m from a country that has this - but in this country - life with no possibility of parole.

I think it's ridiculous giving them special protection, the woman who murdered Star Hobson for example, who would care if she was beaten to death by her inmates, no one would miss her, and we'd probably think it's saving money.

Accidental death one sentence, deliberate murder one sentence

If you deliberately cause a death that is no self defence or person a is trying to kill person b and person c stops it, there can be no justification

So there does not need to be different sentences it should be life without parole

This 'oh they had a bad childhood and got into drugs' is crap they deliberately killed.

But if they do give less that life then it should 10 years but if you misbehave 15 so it increases

Or you will never be released unless you say where your victims are or what happened to them

Life meaning life. No getting out. A basic existence with no comforts.

It does save the cost of incarcerating them for the next 30 years. Admittedly times have changed and convicts in the US can spend decades on death row rather than everything being decided quickly.

The reoffending rate is zero, I'd say that was the main plus. I hate seeing headlines of "freed to attack again"

Death penalty.

Re the death penalty. If someone murdered my kids, sure, I’d want to kill them with my bare hands. An ugly but perhaps natural instinct, and one that some people commenting on threads like this often seem to indulge in, to gain a sense of moral superiority. However, we have a flawed justice system capable of convicting the innocent even with the most advanced forensics. For that reason alone the death penalty should not be used. Second, I am also against it on libertarian grounds that the government shouldn’t have the right to lawfully kill. Third, revenge is not a good basis to improve society when there is potential for reform. The offer of assisted suicide to convicted murderers with 30+ year tarif is an interesting idea though.

I think you go to jail for the sentences given. No time of for ‘good behaviour’ or the expectation you will only serve half of it or in the case of life minimum tariffs

the great majority, regardless of what crime they have committed cannot or do not want to be rehabilitated

It's complex and nuanced. If you believe in the possibility of redemption then presumably that also applies to murderers.

The sentencing guidlines are formulated by putting various examples in front of panels comprised of members of the public, so it's not done in a political or legal vacuum.

As far as the death penalty goes it's barbaric I think humans should be better than that

I also believe that one person wrongly convicted and put to death is just one too many.

Edited for an extraneous word

@OpalOrchid or hold the gas mask over their mouth when the injection doesn’t work…

This is a really good point - it's to the benefit of society as a whole if prison rehabilitates rather than purely punishes. That may not apply to these individuals but it does have to apply to a given prison overall, which means the environment matters.

Are you prepared to give that lethal injection then?

Some very naive, idealistic comments about the death penalty.

Many killers are just monsters who enjoy killing and have no remorse whatsoever.

There is zero benefit for society to feed and house them for the rest of their life and no rehabilitation will ever work for this type of people.

I have no issues with them getting what they deserve and losing their life for what they did.

As a society, we should address the reasons why children as young as 14, 15 are committing murder - be they premeditated, opportunistic, gang related or the result of a disturbed mind.

They are not evil. Ill (including sociopathy etc), emotionally stunted, disturbed, groomed, neglected they may be and as such we, as a society, owe it to children to protect them from being affected by such tragedy (either as perpetrators or victims).