Life and Death Row

[Thegoatliesdownonbroadway]

I am watching this on BBC2. People have been clamouring for the death penalty to come back in this country for the likes of the Southport killer. Even if some killers "deserve" death, we can't put their families through what the mother of Ivan Cantu had to go through.

I think it's a knee jerk visceral reaction to want evil people to die but I don't think we should decide who lives and dies. I often think people should be left to rot in prison with no niceties but then taking their freedom is their punishment. Not enough of one for some. I'm not sure if rehabilitation works for most. I do think prisoners should work at something productive in the prison but I'm not sure about getting degrees. Basic qualifications if they don't have them, yes, but not degrees that the rest of us get into debt for. However, will those degrees do them any good on the outside in reality? Probably not. I don't have an answer and think it's very complex. I wonder what country has the highest rate of rehabilitation and no further offences?

A friend of mine old enough to remember when we had the death penalty felt that it 'coarsened' society.

Do you fancy a group of undesirables cheering outside a jail at the time when the Southport Killer/Fred West/Whoever was due to be killed?

Also of course it involves a lot of people, Court Staff, Judges, Juries, Prison Officers, Civil Servants etc and there is the effect it has on them.

Very few professionals ever did more than one capital trial because of the stress of it, had everything been done correctly, had anything been missed?

There was a very good Timewatch programme in the death penalty in the UK where they interviewed many people who had been involved in an execution, not just the last surviving UK executioner but a Bishop, Prison officer, Civil Servant and others

Worth pointing out that the last time Parliament voted on the Death Penalty the entire UK Prison Governor workforce said they would resign if it was brought back.

www.theguardian.com/world/2014/aug/03/britains-last-hangman-harry-allen

I visited Shrewsbury prison a few years back and was quite traumatised by the stories told of hangings, the records of the crimes and the sentences which were often death by hanging. Such mild crimes by today's standards. Homosexuality for one. How the hell can anyone justify killing someone for being gay. Horrendous.
As a student nurse I visited Doncaster YOI and fucking hell those cells were tiny and I'm a small person who found them claustrophobic and that was with the door open. The ceilings were so low everywhere except the big hall. It was dark and dismal and very depressing.

Doctors had to be involved as well. Both before and afterwards. Then someone has to do an autopsy. I can't see the BMA allowing any of its members to be involved.