kiwi_child

Various states in the US have had the death penalty for a very long time. It has done NOTHING to prevent or lower the homocide rate! As a long serving prison guard in California once said. "the only person it deters is the one facing the gas chamber" or words to that effect.

The death penalty across Asian countries has NOT stopped people becoming involved in drug trafficking.

It simply DOES NOT WORK and is classified by many academics and human rights organisations a 'cruel and unusual punishment'.

War is a very different thing. And yes is is also state sanctioned murder and professional armed forces should ONLY be deployed for defence or humanitarian purposes.

yanH

That may be so but many of them kill at the moment in any case. If Capital Punishment was applied at least there would be no chance of them re offending. Why put the life of another child at risk by trying to rehabilitate these monsters?

kiwi_child

Life imprisonment for murder is standard in many societies. I have no problem with that. Capital punishment is another matter altogether, and as has been said before, it DOES NOT lower homocide rates, nor drug trafficking rates, so is unlikely to work on any other type of offending. It also is a manifestly excessive sentence in a case where murder did not occur.

You also seem to miss the point I have been trying to make: capital punishment for other crimes will only lead to more murder victims, NOT fewer!

yanH

I don't miss your point I simply don't agree

kiwi_child

Well, of course you're entitled to hold a different opinon but I do wonder on what evidence you hold it? Or is it a matter of simply believing populist rhetoric espoused by persons in the media who take 'hard line' stances to boost their ratings? There is an awful lot of that that goes on here in OZ. People swayed to take a particular view without having explored the subject objectively and in any depth.

yanH

No its not down to be influenced by 'populist rhetoric'. Strange as it may seem it is down to my own analysis and interpretation of the information available to me ( and yes I do read more widely than 'The Sun' and the Daily Mail'.). I have been interested in Law and Order for many years since looking at this whilst studying for my Degree.

kiwi_child

Just wondering what your degree is in. Mine's Social Sciences, which may account in part for some influence on my views, the balance being life experience. I imagine we will just have to agree to differ. But it does beg the question: Just how far are people prepared to take this capital punishment thing? What crimes should it be applied to? That would be an interesting debate in itself!

hoofie2002

I disagreed strongly with Kiwi Child on another subject, but I have to agree with her on this one. However heinous the rape of an 8 year old child is [and I have a young daughter], executing the man who committed the crime is wrong. He should be in jail for a long time certainly, but he didn't take a life [in the literal sense] therefore why should his life be taken ?

As for drug trafficking, capital punishment doesn't work. I lived in a country for 3 years where drug traffickers were executed in public. And still, a 747 would land every day from the sub-contintent and a couple of people on board would be carrying herion. The lucky ones who weren't caught were paid about 500US$ for doing it. Those that were caught [poorly educated labourers invariably] ended up in 'Chop-chop' square having their head removed with a sword.

My point is, couriers are often desperate people. Execute all of them and they will still come. The target's should be the high level organisers who are almost always untouchable due to political and financial connections.

HAVING SAID ALL THIS I do think the death penalty should exist [Sorry to disagree with you here Kiwi Child] for the following crimes :

• Rape and murder of a child
• Murder of a policeman on duty
• Treason [not as irrelevant as it sounds]

Back to the original post - I thought I read that the guy who stabbed those 2 on the freeway was punched first ? Best solution is put cameras on the freeway and monitor it - that would do something about the moronic drivers on it [who always seem to drive a shagged-out commodore] - I'm surprised they haven't as it wouldn't be exhoribantly expensive.

yanH

As the father of a 9 year old girl I think that all child rapists should be executed. You might not have "taken their life" but beyond the immediate physical injuries the attacker has certainly destroyed their childhood, destroyed their trust in other human beings and possibly destroyed their entire life. And to me that is quite enough to justify their sentencing.

yanH

Political Science. Graduated in 1997.

northernbird

Yep might as well have taken her life, it is ruined anyway.

kez81

Its is easy to say that its too harsh when it has happened to you, im a mother of a 4 year old and if someone did what this evil pervert did to that 8 year old girl i would want them too die, i know someone who was a victim of abuse for a large chunk of there life the perve who abused them did get jail but only 2 years it makes them sick too think he's living his life probably thinking indecent thoughts about children.

The best punishment is Death or castration either way 2/3 years in jail what most of them get doesn't cut it!!!

kezx

jon and alex

On the issue of the knife attack I think it is clear that the sentence was far too lenient and to take into account the references from his community leaders shows how little the judge understands about the Kurdish society - they tend to protect their own regardless of what they have done.
A 4cm blade can kill - the luckiest bloke I've ever seen (I'm a copper) had a pen knife sticking out of his forehead (I thought it must have bent but it didn't, the blade went straight in but somehow didn't kill him!) Funnily enough it was a Kurd that stabbed him!
On the issue of the death penalty I would suggest that the evidence shows that execution has no effect on crime rates when taken and used in isolation.
There is an immense volume of evidence, though, that tough punnishment of crime does reduce crime rates - look at New York, Chicago, Singapore. The difference is that the tough approach starts with the very minor offences - cut out lawlessness at the bottom rung of the ladder and the evidence seems to show that serious crime will be reduced. This has to be backed up with harsh sentencing for recidivist offenders and those that commit serious crimes. This may or may not include the death penalty.

renth

Now you're talking my language. I'd love to see the authorities get seriosly tough on all the druggies and violent crims in WA.

kiwi_child

Actually it has been proven that long term emotional abuse has a far deeper impact on children than even sexual assault. That is not do dismiss the gravity that sexual abuse can have on the victims.