This article, in sharp contrast to my first post, made me very happy. I stated earlier that I was against the entire idea of capital punishment, but until now I (with my limited knowledge of the justice system) had been unable to come up with an equally drastic but not as terrible punishment for such an action. This article not only states one, but talks of a state that might actually follow this law in the future! The punishment Utah's Associate Cheif Justice Wilkins describes is a lifelong sentence in prison with no parole what-so-ever.
I think this is a very good idea because I believe capital punishment is a hanis and morally flawed law and Utah's stated possible law is an excellent alternative.
November 13, 2008
Utah Supreme Court says it might be forced to overturn death sentences (article#2)
This is a fairly short article that talks of how in the Utah Supreme court, people have begun to feel that the trials are unfair and are reaching false conclusions. The Associate Cheif Justice Michael Wilkins said that "we may be forced to hold that the lack of such counsel is sufficient grounds for outright reversal of a capital [sense?] and remand for the imposition of a sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole."
November 6, 2008
Nigerian Executions- RESPONCE
I was very shocked at this article, seeing as before I was simply against the idea of Capital Punishment, now I am against it and have good, solid facts to support why it is immoral and unjust. While I still have to do some research on what the conditions are for inmates in other parts of the world, the fact that in some parts they must stay on death penalty for many years, even when living in bad conditions and suffering from mental disorders.
Also, the part in the article that pointed out that "more than 40 offenders were sentenced while under the age of 18" disturbed me greatly. The fact that someone not much older than myself could be sentenced to death and killed is a disquieting point that I would be interested to find more on (i.e. what counts as "youth" and what states and/or countries follow the youth restrictions on Capital Punishment)
However, this is not a completely negative article, it talks of one man Aster Van KregtenInternational's Nigeria researcher) who is quoted as saying "It is truly horrifying to think of how many innocent people may have been executed and may still be executed," We can only hope that people like this will continue to have a strong opinion about the subject and takes steps towards making the world a better place.
Also, the part in the article that pointed out that "more than 40 offenders were sentenced while under the age of 18" disturbed me greatly. The fact that someone not much older than myself could be sentenced to death and killed is a disquieting point that I would be interested to find more on (i.e. what counts as "youth" and what states and/or countries follow the youth restrictions on Capital Punishment)
However, this is not a completely negative article, it talks of one man Aster Van KregtenInternational's Nigeria researcher) who is quoted as saying "It is truly horrifying to think of how many innocent people may have been executed and may still be executed," We can only hope that people like this will continue to have a strong opinion about the subject and takes steps towards making the world a better place.
Nigerian Executions (article#1)
This is a very powerful article dealing with the fact that the criminal justice system in Nigeria is very flawed and unfair, often assigning innocent people to the death penalty. Then, after they are convicted, the way of going about the execution is not reliable and often takes several tries to kill the person.
The article also touches upon the subjects I am interested in: Capital Punishment and how it is applied to youth and the mentally challenged. "Amnesty calls for moratorium on Nigerian executions" says that "More than 720 men and 11 women are on death row in Nigeria and one of them has been under sentence of death for 24 years. More than 40 offenders were sentenced while under the age of 18, against international law..." It also states that "...inmates spent an average of 10-15 years on death row often in deplorable condition, and that many of them were suffering from mental disorders."
The article also touches upon the subjects I am interested in: Capital Punishment and how it is applied to youth and the mentally challenged. "Amnesty calls for moratorium on Nigerian executions" says that "More than 720 men and 11 women are on death row in Nigeria and one of them has been under sentence of death for 24 years. More than 40 offenders were sentenced while under the age of 18, against international law..." It also states that "...inmates spent an average of 10-15 years on death row often in deplorable condition, and that many of them were suffering from mental disorders."
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