death penalty Archive

1

Service to kill for

By
Trevor Macomber
– January 10, 2012
Freedom in a can!

Apparently, all it takes these days to be pardoned for murder is a little Pledge — and no, I don’t mean a pledge saying that you won’t do it again; I mean the actual cleaning product.

According to MSNBC,

Outgoing Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour has pardoned at least four convicted killers who worked at the Governor’s Mansion, including a man who was denied parole less than two weeks ago.

[...]

In the executive orders Barbour signed, he wrote each “proved to be a diligent and dedicated workman.”

[...]

The former inmates are David Gatlin, convicted of killing his estranged wife in 1993; Joseph Ozment, convicted in 1994 of killing a man during a robbery; Anthony McCray, convicted in 2001 of killing his wife; Charles Hooker, sentenced to life in 1992 for murder; and Nathan Kern, sentenced to life in 1982 for burglary after at least two prior convictions.

You can read the article for the details surrounding each of the brutal murders, but trust me when I say that it only exacerbates the redonkulous-ness of the situation — especially when you factor in the information that, under Barbour, Mississippi has also executed nine murderers in the last six years. But hey, what else would you expect from a Republican, right?

Oh…

Democrats were quick to condemn the pardons, though past governors from both parties have granted some sort of early release to the inmates who lived and worked at the Governor’s Mansion.

“Serving your sentence at the Governor’s Mansion where you pour liquor, cook and clean should not earn a pardon for murder,” Public Service Commissioner Brandon Presley, a Democrat, posted Monday on his Facebook page.

[...]

Barbour’s three predecessors, dating back to 1988, gave some type of early release or pardon to a total of 12 Governor’s Mansion trusties. All but two of them had been convicted of murder. One was serving time for forgery and another for armed robbery and aggravated assault. [emphasis my own]

I don’t know what “trusties” are (sounds like a low-end adult diaper brand), but anyone following Barbour’s career over the years shouldn’t be surprised. From Radley Balko’s two-year-old Slate article on a similar subject:

Over the last two years [2007-2009], as reported by the Jackson Free Press, Barbour has pardoned, granted clemency to, or suspended the sentences of at least five convicted murderers, four of whom killed their wives or girlfriends. Those four are:

  • Bobby Hays Clark, who in 1996 shot his ex-girlfriend in the neck and beat her boyfriend with a broom handle. Clark, who had a previous aggravated assault conviction, was sentenced to 38 years. Barbour pardoned him last year without notifying the family of Clark’s victim.
  • Michael David Graham, who in 1989 shot his ex-wife point-blank with a shotgun while she waited at a traffic light. Barbour suspended Graham’s life sentence, and he was released.
  • Clarence Jones, who stabbed his ex-girlfriend 22 times in 1992. She had previously filed multiple assault and trespassing charges against him. He was sentenced to life in prison. Barbour pardoned him last year.
  • Paul Joseph Warnock, who in 1989 shot his girlfriend in the back of the head as she slept. He was sentenced to life in prison in 1993. Barbour pardoned him last year.

Barbour also pardoned William James Kimble, convicted and sentenced to life for robbing and murdering an elderly man in 1991.

None of these men were pardoned because of concerns that they didn’t receive a fair trial or could be innocent. Instead, all five were enrolled in a prison trusty program that had them doing odd jobs around the Mississippi governor’s mansion. Responding to backlash when Barbour suspended Graham’s sentence, a spokesman for Barbour told the Free Press, “Historically, Governors have reviewed cases like that of Michael Graham, whose conduct as a prisoner earned him the right to work as a trusty at the Governor’s Mansion, where he has performed well and proven to be a diligent workman. The Governor is giving him a chance through an indefinite suspension of his sentence to start a new life away from Pascagoula and Jackson County, pending his future good behavior.”

Yeah! Fuck the murdered! Why should I have no life just because they don’t, right?

Take us home, Mississippi Corrections Commissioner Chris Epps:

“I have sympathy and empathy for the victims,” Epps said. “I’ve been a crime victim, but the point of the matter is this is just something that happens.”

Almost makes you want to break in to song…

I’m proud to be an American
Where at least I know I’m free
And I won’t forget the floors I mopped
Which is why you pardoned me
And I gladly stand UP next to you
Since I’m no longer in jail-y
‘Cause there ain’t no doubt I luv this guv
God Bless that Barbour, Haley!

1

Death to Death

By
Trevor Macomber
– January 6, 2012

We’ve excoriated the death penalty before, but Roger Ebert wins the aggregate eloquence prize in his recent blog post:

Executions are carried out in behalf of Society, which means you and me. Traditionally in human history they have been viewed as punishment: If an eye for an eye, then why not a life for a life? In recent America history the argument is used that they will act as a deterrent, although I believe few murders are prevented as a result. In some cases, more people die, because if one victim is unintentionally killed in the process of a crime, more are likely to be killed to eliminate possible witnesses. The death penalty essentially acts as a reason to kill.

Do you, do I, feel better when a killer is executed? Why should we? What good does the execution do for the killer’s victim? Do family members feel vindicated? Some do, some do not, and in any event their feelings are not a justification for public policy [emphasis my own]. If the taking of life is wrong, then it is wrong in all cases.

If an execution takes place in an atmosphere of great care and caution, as it should, there is at least some reason for Society to feel confident a guilty man is dying. In a state like Texas and a county like Harris [which miraculously yields "over one third of Texas's 305 death row inmates - and half of the state's 121 black death row prisoners"], there is little reason to be sure of that. I suggest it is impossible that the judicial system functions with 100% accuracy, and yet that is what the actions of governors Bush and Perry assume. On the basis of Death Row inmates found innocent and released in Illinois and other states, it is impossible that all 387 people executed during their terms were guilty.

Forthwith, another pretty picture based on the chart in Ebert’s post depicting the number of executions by state since 1976:

(Source data:)

0

The Last Last Meal

By
Trevor Macomber
– September 26, 2011

From The Slatest:

Responding to a letter from an influential state senator, the head of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice announced Thursday that the state would no longer give death row inmates their choice of a final repast.

The move came after universally-reviled white supremacist gang member Lawrence Brewer ordered up a particularly lavish feast before his execution Wednesday night. Brewer, 44, had been convicted for his role in a 1998 hate killing in which a 49-year-old black man, James Byrd, Jr., was chained by his ankles to a pickup truck and dragged for miles along an asphalt road. The killers dumped his decapitated body in front of an African-American cemetery in Jasper, Texas.

According to the Houston Chronicle: “Brewer ordered—but did not eat—a final meal of two chicken fried steaks, a triple-meat bacon cheeseburger, a cheese omelet, a large bowl of fried okra, three fajitas, a pint of Blue Bell ice cream, and a pound of barbecue with a half loaf of white bread.”

So Brewer was an inhuman asshole. Hasn’t anyone ever heard of personal discretion? You don’t need to revoke the entire last meal privilege. If you think an inmate who orders 10 pounds of food isn’t going to eat it all, don’t fucking give it to him. Otherwise, fer Christ’s sake, you’re about to take a man’s life. At least toss him a goddamn cheeseburger if he asks for it.

***

By the way, here are the countries that still use the death penalty. I don’t know about you, but I think we fit right in here!

  • Afghanistan
  • Antigua and Barbuda
  • Bahamas
  • Bahrain
  • Bangladesh
  • Barbados
  • Belarus
  • Belize
  • Botswana
  • Burundi
  • Cameroon
  • Chad
  • China (People’s Republic)
  • Comoros
  • Congo (Democratic Republic)
  • Cuba
  • Dominica
  • Egypt
  • Equatorial Guinea
  • Eritrea
  • Ethiopia
  • Gabon
  • Ghana
  • Guatemala
  • Guinea
  • Guyana
  • India
  • Indonesia
  • Iran
  • Iraq
  • Jamaica
  • Japan
  • Jordan
  • Korea, North
  • Korea, South
  • Kuwait
  • Laos
  • Lebanon
  • Lesotho
  • Libya
  • Malawi
  • Malaysia
  • Mongolia
  • Nigeria
  • Oman
  • Pakistan
  • Palestinian Authority
  • Qatar
  • St. Kitts and Nevis
  • St. Lucia
  • St. Vincent and the Grenadines
  • Saudi Arabia
  • Sierra Leone
  • Singapore
  • Somalia
  • Sudan
  • Swaziland
  • Syria
  • Taiwan
  • Tajikistan
  • Tanzania
  • Thailand
  • Trinidad and Tobago
  • Uganda
  • United Arab Emirates
  • United States
  • Vietnam
  • Yemen
  • Zambia
  • Zimbabwe
0

Barbarians Applaud Capital Punishment

By
Tom OHare
– September 8, 2011

At last night’s Republican presidential debate, Brian Williams mentioned that Texas has killed a bunch of people during Rick Perry’s tenure as governor, and the crowd went wild. Rick Perry then lied about the “thoughtfulness” of Texas’ justice system, and said he sleeps just fine at night despite executing at least one innocent person, and the crowd went wild again.

I don’t think Perry stands a chance in the general election, given the ranting lunacy that apparently makes up his literary output, but the fact that the Republican audience is openly cheering a man who actively impeded the exoneration of an innocent man, and that the man was subsequently killed in his state, is rather… troubling? Heinous? What’s with the “Yay, death penalty!” mentality? When did our right to kill people become a Republican cause celebre?

These people honestly want to take us back to the Dark Ages. Fuck them.

(via TPM)

0

Georgia is Trying to Execute an Innocent Black Man

By
Tom OHare
– September 7, 2011

I’m against the death penalty in all cases, because I’m not a barbarian like a great many of my fellow citizens. But I’m especially against it in cases where the guy about to be executed is, you know, probably innocent:

Troy Davis, the death row inmate about whom I wrote last week, has been given an execution date of September 21.

I repeat: Mr. Davis is almost certainly innocent of the crime for which the state of Georgia wants to kill him.

There is no physical evidence connecting him to the crime, seven out of the nine eyewitnesses have recanted, stating that they had been pressured, coerced or frightened into testifying, and jury members have said flat out: “If I knew then what I know now, Troy Davis would not be on death row.”

The police officer that Mr. Davis was convicted of murdering deserves that justice be done — but killing a man who had nothing to do with Officer MacPhail’s death will only compound the injustice horribly.

Now, click the link, sign the petition, draft a letter, and you know, be an Internet hero. Or at least try. Trying is so underrated these days.

1

Life Is a Many-Splendored Thing

By
Trevor Macomber
– March 21, 2011

Two weeks ago, Illinois governor Patrick Joseph “Pat” Quinn III signed off on new legislation banning the death penalty in his state.

For me, the key sentiment from his statement was as follows:

Since our experience has shown that there is no way to design a perfect death penalty system, free from the numerous flaws that can lead to wrongful convictions or discriminatory treatment, I have concluded that the proper course of action is to abolish it. With our broken system, we cannot ensure justice is achieved in every case.

Aficionados of capital punishment take note: this is a crucial distinction. Quinn is not saying that the death penalty itself is wrong or misguided — i.e., that no matter how heinous their deeds, there exist zero criminals in this world who deserve to have their lives forcibly taken from them. What he’s saying is that, given the practical limitations of our current justice system, there is no morally acceptable way to determine someone’s death-worthiness to the requisite degree of certainty that such an immutable outcome dictates.

Although it doesn’t come up much in my quotidian conversations with friends and coworkers involving which super power I’d rather have, or why Newsies is possibly the catchiest movie-musical of all time, I have always been a staunch — if mostly silent — opponent of the death penalty. (I can’t speak for my fellow editors, but perhaps they’ll chime in in the comments.) For me, it boils down to a few basic points:

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