Even if it were true that his case were a slam dunk, and all the witness recantations turned out to be credible, the dilemma of an innocent man dying so that, say, nine hundred ninety nine actually guilty murderers are put to death is not going to advance the cause of anti-death penalty advocates. While this sort of situation does tug at the heart strings (we think, "What if I were innocent? I wouldn't want to be put to death."), it isn't going to convince those who believe in such an extreme form of retributive punishment: those who are willing to accept the possibility of an innocent person dying in order to carry out absolute punishment on murderers in their respective states. I'm not sure what it will take to convince people that the death penalty is wrong, but I do know that publicity stunts like the one performed at the expense of Troy Davis and his family are not advancing the debate. Although I am sure Troy Davis and his loved ones were heartened by the outpouring of support for his cause, I cannot help but think that it also filled them with a sense of false hope only to be realized by a painful let-down.
Started writing while listening to: Arcade Fire - Well and the Lighthouse
I think it's weird to juxtapose this case alongside that of Casey Anthony--after all, this man was basically forced into a position of proving his own innocence rather than guilt.
ReplyDeleteI'm afraid there might be no convincing people who strongly advocate the death penalty. Just listen to all that cheering for the death penalty at the GOP Debate...
- Tori
The structure of our justice system does that in a sense; that after being convicted you have to bring up evidence proving innocence on appeal, but it's a bit more complex than that. but yeah the problem is definitely with the strength of anti-death penalty arguments.
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