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(visit the link for the full news article)
Damon Thibodeaux has been proved innocent of a crime for which Louisiana has spent 15 years trying to kill him. In his first interview since being freed, he talks to Ed Pilkington
snip>
"When I read the transcript of the trial for the first time, I thought to myself that the high school mock trial team that I coached of 15- to 17-year-olds would have run rings around the lawyers in that courtroom," said Kaplan. "We put more energy into a $50,000 contract dispute than went into the defense...
Not so Steven Kaplan. He cites academic studies that suggest that 2% to 4% of death-row inmates are probably innocent. "If that was the rate of failure of airplanes," he says, "would you fly?"
FlightAware has tracked 70,035 arrivals in the last 24 hours.
In the case of cold murder? Death isn't just a good punishment, it's the only one. Take another life? You have yours taken from you. Sounds fair to me... That is absolute in the case of killing a cop. Not because they're cops and that makes their life special. Thats never been the reasoning. If someone is willing to kill a cop though, that means there is NO line and NO taboo that person will not break at that point. They've become rabid dogs that need put down.
Originally posted by boncho
Is death even a good punishment? I mean, if you kill someone right away, they get out instantly of what they've done. Sure they are dead now, but they don't know that once the heart stops beating. Is it too much to house the select few for the rest of their lives in a tiny cell so they have to think about what they've done and live in repressive conditions? Knowing they will never be free again...
1 cent from every American is 3 million dollars. This is enough to house plenty of people convicted on the most heinous crimes. Think of how much money is spent on useless judicial programs. Why not focus on locking away the most heinous prisoners, (actually proving their guilt properly to begin with) and cut some of the senseless justices that send mothers and family people behind bars for years***** for truly no purpose other than to flex judicial might.
At least if there is a wrongful conviction in this system, you didn't kill someone, you ruined their life yes, but killing and innocent person is such a huge injustice that the possibility of error should bar the practice.
As they said in the article:
Not so Steven Kaplan. He cites academic studies that suggest that 2% to 4% of death-row inmates are probably innocent. "If that was the rate of failure of airplanes," he says, "would you fly?"
www.guardian.co.uk...
To put that quote into perspective:
FlightAware has tracked 70,035 arrivals in the last 24 hours.
flightaware.com...
Flight aware has tracked 70,000 flights landing in the last 24 hours. A flight failure rate of 2-4% is 1400-2800 planes crashing. If 2800 planes failed their landings daily, would you fly?edit on 7-12-2012 by boncho because: (no reason given)
Thats never been the reasoning. If someone is willing to kill a cop though, that means there is NO line and NO taboo that person will not break at that point. They've become rabid dogs that need put down.
It's about the killer's perspective. There is NOTHING more Anti-social and more removed FROM society a person can do than to wantonly murder a member of that society charged with keeping peace and order. When THAT murder has been committed wantonly, then every human being that offender ever comes in contact with again, for the rest of their lives, is in grave danger IMO.
Why for cops? Like I said above...If you'll kill the people Society has chosen to appoint to protect us, then NO member of society will pose a serious hang up to kill for the same guy. Hence...... it's a death penalty requirement that stands above all others..and noted for that reason.
Originally posted by GrantedBail
I love these kind of stories. Mr. Thibodeaux is the 300th prisoner in the US to be exonerated by DNA and the 18th on death row. I await the day that DNA testing is done on someone that has already been executed by the State for there to be a nation-wide moratorium on the death penalty.
Until our severely damaged criminal legal system is repaired, we simply MUST stop all executions.
Here is just another case of detectives and district attorneys ignoring exonerating evidence as well as inept and perhaps corrupted public defenders.
Originally posted by Wrabbit2000
Good Lord... 300... I had no idea it had become SO many.... So without the DNA evidence, 300 men would have died as innocent men. We have a system based on the idea that it be better 100 men go free than 1 man be wrongly convicted. Yet, DNA doesn't lie. 300 innocent men WOULD have died prisoners.
I am 100% behind the Death Penalty. I'm no softy on the worst of the worst...but geeze... Absolute proof before the Absolute punishment should be the standard to meet. Not "beyond A reasoonable doubt" but to be technical? Beyond ANY reasonable doubt by proof positive. DNA, Video tape of good quality or old fashoined 'Caught red handed'. That should be the min....and after major major system reform.
Originally posted by GrantedBail
Louisiana death row inmate freed after 15 years – with a little help from DNA
www.guardian.co.uk
(visit the link for the full news article)
Damon Thibodeaux has been proved innocent of a crime for which Louisiana has spent 15 years trying to kill him. In his first interview since being freed, he talks to Ed Pilkington
snip>
"When I read the transcript of the trial for the first time, I thought to myself that the high school mock trial team that I coached of 15- to 17-year-olds would have run rings around the lawyers in that courtroom," said Kaplan. "We put more energy into a $50,000 contract dispute than went into the defense...
Related News Links:
incaseofinnocence.wordpress.com