Fresh on the heels of two Miami Dade juries choosing life for two men previously convicted of two senseless homicides last Friday, President Biden commuted the death sentences of every defendant on federal death row save three:
The three men who can still face federal execution are Robert D. Bowers, 52, who in 2018 gunned down 11 worshipers at the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh; Dylann Roof, 30, the white supremacist who in 2015 opened fire on Black parishioners at a church in Charleston, S.C., killing nine people; and Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, 31, one of the two brothers who carried out the bombing of the Boston Marathon in 2013 that killed three and maimed more than a dozen others.
Rumpole muses- these are difficult issues. Those who have experienced loss in their lives are often left to wonder why the person who caused the loss is allowed to live while their loved one is gone. This is the reason we should not turn questions of punishment over to victims and survivors. A justice system predicated on emotional vengeance is neither a justice system or justice. It is mob rule. A century ago and more, Mobs dragged innocent African American men out of southern jail cells and hung them in emotional reaction to the crimes they were accused of (usually involving accusations of crimes against white women)- we do not want to return to those times.
In more recent times the vernacular has changed as those in power call the accused and convicted (not to mention immigrants) "Animals". When you dehumanize people you get dehumanizing results inconsistent with a society founded on the principle that all people are created equal, not to mention the Judeo-Christain ethics that current politicians wrap themselves in, which includes the reflection that all people were created in the image of The Creator.
The ideals of our justice system is to rise up above the emotional need for vengeance.
Hate begets hate; violence begets violence; toughness begets a greater toughness. We must meet the forces of hate with the power of love...
Dr. Martin Luther King.
Our own (considerable) experience with the justice system is that we have met very few people whose violent acts cannot be explained and understood as a combination of tragedy, abuse, and illness. We have yet to meet a child who on their own is destined for violence. But we have met many adults who treat children in a manner that puts them on a path for tragedy.
By commuting the death sentences President Biden rises up above the mob's cry for vengeance. A devout Catholic, it is no surprise that these commutations come after his meeting with the Pope last week.
There is more to do. There are more people languishing in federal prison who are more deserving of a second chance for life than those who were on death row. If we were President we would want our staff to find every woman used as a mule for a drug organization who is serving a minimum mandatory sentence- and start with commuting their sentences and pardoning those who merit it.
But this is a good continuation of his current polices of commuting sentences. There is more time and more work to do.
FYI if you followed our football picks ye$terday, you can shoot us a thank$ in the comments.
7 comments:
Biden is not doing anything. His handlers are. He’s fried. He’s no longer with us. All lives are not equal. Some people should die. That’s just unconscious knowledge. Pigs in zen.
Maybe I have the numbers wrong but I believe there have been six jury recommendations in death cases in REG in 2024 and only one was for death. Kathy needs to stop the expensive madness of trying to execute people. Especially these resentencings where the State is 0-3 at least.
Since Biden lacks mental capacity, all his orders should be quashed. Most embarrassing hoax in US history. Thank you Dems, Press, & Liz Cheney.
Absolute sanctity of human life is fine in theory, but inapplicable in real life. Anybody and I mean ANYBODY can be pushed to the brink where they want the ultimate in retribution. If a person cannot live peacefully among others, and is a continuous threat, then they should be taken out. Life is a privilege where a person must not detract from humanity or they cannot walk the same ground any longer. The three holdouts deserve to be put to death by the same society that they sought to wipe out. Who wouldn't kill to protect their family without hesitation? Sometimes us lawyers view things too much in the esoteric. Having a monster take away a somebody's precious possession cannot be empathized.
He should give a pardon to the Illegal who just lit a woman on fire in the New York Subway system. This would perfectly finish close the administration which has only served the liberal elite at the expense of everyone else.
That’s president Musks doing. What an impressive transition. You got to give Trump credit for standing aside and letting him take the wheel.
Really, Life is a privilege? I foolishly thought that People are endowed with unalienable rights including Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness.
Post a Comment