Would you want capital punishment back?

[Mynameisnew]

There are people who do such vile things in this country and are jailed for a decade or two. Perhaps released for good behaviour a bit earlier.

Afaik CP was stopped amongst other reasons because there were a number of errors made and innocent people being convicted.

But these days with DNA proof or cases where it is on cctv /phone messages or has been admitted (thinking of Emma Tustin)

Would it not make a good deterrent? Even if one person is saved from being murdered...

I appreciate that in the USA people still commit murder, but they also have guns there which means a higher incidence of spur of the moment violence.

But a sustained campaign of abuse - would such an abuser as Tustin have been put off if CP was an option, even if very rarely used?

It's easy for me to say that I would be deterred, but I'm not a psychopathic and sadistic person so the issue is, it's hard to say if people like that would be put off such a crime. Perhaps it doesn't even enter their heads that it's wrong.

No. Mainly because I dont trust that it wouldnt result in total bias miscarriages of justice followed by "lessons learned" years later after a person guilty of no crime has lost their life whilst real killer roams free

@planteen

"Imprisoning people is also wrong, yet we lock people up when they do bad things. "

No, we do not 'lock them up' - the prison system is meant to rehabilitate. I agree it does not always work that way but that is the intent.

The state is the moral arbiter of behaviour, not a 'punishing' institution. We live in a civilised society, not an 'eye for an eye' wilderness.

The death penalty is an aberration.

God no.
We are better than that.
Civilised states don't kill citizens.

Yes, I would fully support it coming back for the worst crimes - eg, crimes against children, murder, proper life in prison sentences etc.

There are miscarriages of justice but I think for the greater good, it is worth the small % of times this happens. Out of the small % of times miscarriages happen, I think the % of complete no smoke without fire will be tiny eg. If someone is stabbed in London and the wrong gang member is found guilty but this gang member is still a very violent individual carries a knife etc, is it a huge loss to society that a mistake has been made? I do think the number of times this would happen though are very small.

If the death penalty is not on the cards though, apparently it costs £45k per year to keep a prisoner in jail. I believe they should have to offset that balance through labour - making things to be sold, manual labour etc. Sitting in a room for most of the day is no good for anyone. The current system has many failings.

There are miscarriages of justice but I think for the greater good, it is worth the small % of times this happens. Out of the small % of times miscarriages happen, I think the % of complete no smoke without fire will be tiny eg. If someone is stabbed in London and the wrong gang member is found guilty but this gang member is still a very violent individual carries a knife etc, is it a huge loss to society that a mistake has been made? I do think the number of times this would happen though are very small.

Bloody hell. I can’t believe anyone could actually think like that.

I'm against it. I do think some people deserve it, but even one innocent person being executed is too many. That, and it doesn't actually work out cheaper than life in prison.

@PurpleDaisies

There are miscarriages of justice but I think for the greater good, it is worth the small % of times this happens. Out of the small % of times miscarriages happen, I think the % of complete no smoke without fire will be tiny eg. If someone is stabbed in London and the wrong gang member is found guilty but this gang member is still a very violent individual carries a knife etc, is it a huge loss to society that a mistake has been made? I do think the number of times this would happen though are very small.

Bloody hell. I can’t believe anyone could actually think like that.

I agree.

There are miscarriages of justice but I think for the greater good, it is worth the small % of times this happens. Out of the small % of times miscarriages happen, I think the % of complete no smoke without fire will be tiny eg. If someone is stabbed in London and the wrong gang member is found guilty but this gang member is still a very violent individual carries a knife etc, is it a huge loss to society that a mistake has been made? I do think the number of times this would happen though are very small.

Look up the case of Stefan Kiszko who was knowingly framed by the police and then say that again. Bringing back the death penalty means that fully innocent people will die and it is horrific that you think this is a reasonable price to pay.

@Dasher789

Yes, I would fully support it coming back for the worst crimes - eg, crimes against children, murder, proper life in prison sentences etc.

There are miscarriages of justice but I think for the greater good, it is worth the small % of times this happens. Out of the small % of times miscarriages happen, I think the % of complete no smoke without fire will be tiny eg. If someone is stabbed in London and the wrong gang member is found guilty but this gang member is still a very violent individual carries a knife etc, is it a huge loss to society that a mistake has been made? I do think the number of times this would happen though are very small.

If the death penalty is not on the cards though, apparently it costs £45k per year to keep a prisoner in jail. I believe they should have to offset that balance through labour - making things to be sold, manual labour etc. Sitting in a room for most of the day is no good for anyone. The current system has many failings.

How about if the miscarriages of justice started to fall on the white neighbourhoods near you.

Where your son hung out in the park with his mates on a late summer evening.

Would you feel the same if it could be your son picked up for "fitting the description"?

Or would you want for there to be the time to uncover the miscarriage and reverse it?

God no - it’s barbaric and ineffective. We’re better than that

I agree with PPs that CP is not carried out in a civilised society, it's barbaric and wrong. People do of course have a strong emotional reaction after a particularly horrific crime and there is a desire for vengeance. But I strongly believe that the law should be free from emotion and desire for revenge. Law and justice should be cold and clinical in their application. However I would support whole life sentences for the vilest crimes to reflect their severity and the possible danger to society of these offenders being released. Imagine being the judge having to pass a death sentence or the person having the carry it out - horrific. And of course there is the risk of errors as well. So I would be strongly opposed to CP.

@RilkeanHeart

No. Some people do abhorrent and barbaric things. The state shouldn’t do abhorrent and barbaric things in response.

Exactly this.

"Murder is the worst possible thing you can do... but it's okay when we do it to show you how bad it is" makes no sense.

I wouldn't oppose it.

There are miscarriages of justice but I think for the greater good, it is worth the small % of times this happens.

What's the "greater good" when it comes to the "small percent" of times an innocent person is killed and a true killer remains at large?

I believe capital punishment fails as a deterrent. There's more punishment in making people work for restitution.

This is capital punishment.

www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2014/12/18/the-rush-job-conviction-of-14-year-old-george-stinney-exonerated-70-years-after-execution/

Absolutely not!

Yes in certain circumstances definitely.

If a criminal is eligible for the death sentence (shocking crime/indisputably guilty) the family get the final say. and what happens when the family decide they don’t want to be responsible for putting someone to death?

You really think the family will be left in peace after that? That everyone will calmly accept their decision? When the press and the public will have been crying out for that family to order the death of such a hideous criminal and they decide against it?

“You’re not a victim,” is such a weak argument. Being a victim doesn’t mean you get to be responsible for the punishment of the perpetrator, because as the victim you are unable to be impartial, and the pressure of being seen to make the right decision according to society’s definition will weigh heavily. It’s an abhorrent thing to suggest.

@Dasher789

Your comments are disgusting. You’re happy for a “small number” of innocent people to be executed to satisfy your bloodlust?

Thank goodness people like you aren’t making the decisions about this.

No, it has no place in a civilised society

I remember reading that when convicted criminals were asked if the death penalty would have acted as a deterrent, the majority said no. Even when the crime was murder. At the time of the murder, they weren't thinking about penalties for their actions.
A surprisingly large percentage of them said the death penalty for rape or child abuse would have made it more likely they murder their victims, so that they couldn't give evidence.
So capital punishment doesn't act as an effective deterrent, and may put victims at further risk. I'm not seeing an up side.

No, because:

1. judicial errors do happen, and are more likely to affect people who are already treated unfairly by society (racist bias, class bias, misogyny, ableism, etc.)

2. it's not a deterrent, it just makes
   a) criminals who already pass the threshold for death penalty more likely to commit further, more violent crimes to avoid getting caught (nothing to lose, might as well go on a killing spree, e.g. charge through crowds with your car to escape the police, etc.)
   b) mentally unstable people already contemplating suicide (in particular, murder/suicide) more likely to consider "suicide by police" (or in that case, suicide by judiciary) as a viable option. When people are angry and desperate, death can feel like an attractive outcome (whereas life in prison might be daunting). And certainty feels good, like you're in control.

3. It legitimises killing people as a just punishment. Therefore, legitimises murder in the head of self-righteous people who feel like taking the law into their own hands.

4. dead people can't talk. Some details can resurface many years after a crime, shedding a new light on its exact circumstances. E.g. the murderer may have been manipulated (coerced, tricked, brainwashed, ...) by someone else into doing the deed (or even manipulated into confessing something they didn’t do). As time pass, loyalties shift, and they may share useful info with the police about the bigger fish...

Absolutely not.

One mistake would be one too many. And they would happen.

I understand your thinking. There are certain individuals - child torturers etc - who don't deserve the air they breathe but hanging them would reduce British justice to their level and that is unacceptable.
I'd be happier with more life terms, where there is absolutely no chance of parole, for the likes of Rose West et al.