What About the Families of the Death-Penalty Condemned?
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There has been a lot in the press today about how the doctors hired to oversee Michael Angelo Morales’ execution, to make sure that he didn’t suffer crushing agony during his lethal injection, refused to carry out their task, saying that it was unethical for them, and went against the Hippocratic oath. They could have done it, technically and medically speaking, but it would be wrong, they said.
The move by the doctors forced a delay in the execution, already delayed by a court ruling that the lethal injection may be cruel and unusual punishment, as there is ample evidence that during the process the condemned experience excrutiating pain, they are just unable to convey it because the drugs sedate and paralyze them.
Michael Angelo Morales was convicted of the rape and killing of Terri Winchell, a 17-year-old high school student. Morales claims that he was high on PCP and alcohol at the time, admits the killing, and expresses deep regret, which many say is sincere.
Equal in press coverage was the reaction of Terri Winchell’s family to the delay in the execution.
They are incredulous that there is concern that Morales not suffer as he goes down.
Now, this could be the point at which I go off on a rant about how the death penalty for an act of callous disregard just perpetuates more callous disregard. Is Morales being made to suffer going to bring Terri Winchell back? No, of course not. Why would Winchell’s family want him to suffer then? I’ll leave you to your own answers, because that is not my rant.
No, my rant is about this, and this is why I am opposed to the death penalty:
Because the death penalty does not punish the defendant. Hey, they’re dead, what do they care?
But what about Morales’ family? They are the unspoken victims in this whole drama, and in general it is the family of the condemned who are the unspoken victims in death penalty cases.
Morales’ death will serve no useful purpose. It won’t serve as a deterrant to others. It won’t give Terri Winchell back to her family. And once Morales is dead, he won’t care.
No, what will be left will be Morales’ family. A mother and father who must watch, powerless, and go through unimaginable agony, as their child is killed. An agony they will relive every waking hour of the rest of their days.
Why are we punishing them for the Winchells’ loss?
Why do we punish the defendants’ family?
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February 21st, 2006 at 3:16 pm
Maybe Morales’s mom is a crack head and his dad left when he was a baby - so they won’t care much. Although that is implying crack heads do not care about their children, and I guess that isn’t fair. I guess the execution will free up a spot in prison. I personally think we should do away with the death penalty and start using the same physical punishment that other countries do. He beat her with a hammer - beat him with a hammer. He raped her - chop off his penis. Death is an easy out. Make them suffer the same way their victims suffered. I bet crime rates would go down. Oh yeah, and do it publicly.
February 21st, 2006 at 3:43 pm
Dang PBandJ, remind me to never piss you off!! I wish there was a workable answer to this problem. I have one, but no one likes it. Limit child births by age of couple, limit amount of children, consider the amount of support they can provide, and make them have a lot of child rearing education. Make adults responsible for their children, yada, yada, yada. Well that’s not gonna happen. So the alternative is to keep building prisons. But they get run by incompetents, and eventually the inmates run the joint, and that punishment is totally not a punishment. I think the government needs to hold a contest to solve this dilemma, winner gets to be the new pope.
February 21st, 2006 at 9:52 pm
I like your thinking TexasYankey - if only there good be such requirements on parenting - SO many problems would be solved!!
February 22nd, 2006 at 12:55 pm
I’ve learned that nothing useful or helpful is being taught in schools or college these days. I even heard there was a college course on the Simpson’s. Wouldn’t that time spend be better served if perhaps a class on dealing with temper-mental children was taught? Perhaps a class on anger management? Well, if it’s good, useful, helpful or wise, you’re not going to see it going down in today’s society. People are much more comfortable letting the world be cared for by someone else, who is letting the world be cared for by someone else, which means no one is caring for the world. Therefore, we have more juvenile delinquents, more prisons, more heinous crimes, more apathy.
March 1st, 2006 at 7:00 am
Did this site die a slow death ????
March 1st, 2006 at 6:39 pm
this is an interesting subject, one that had never occured to me. I feel that it is not the court system that is punishing the families of the people who commit thes crime but the criminal themselves. Unless a person is severely developmentaly disabled they know what is right and what is wrong. If they choose to do drugs and then go out and rape and murder, then that is their choice. They are aware beforehand what the results of their actions will be. Courts do not make the laws, only enforce them.
March 10th, 2006 at 9:31 pm
Getting back to the original rant…Yeah, what about the parents, the family, the extended family, friends, high school aquaintenances…? the list goes on and on. And could add up to DOZENS, maybe more, hundreds!! Think about ALL the persons affected by this putrid act of state sanctioned murder who really are powerless as all they can do is stand on the sidelines and witness this dehumanizing act; from a (probably) shady arrest to cops who blatantly LIE on the stand, state witnesses (Don’t forget where that money is coming from), to a–usually highly politicized trial led by a prosecuter with an agenda–and that agenda does NOT INCLUDE ANYTHING in YOUR BEST interest. And all this garbage is the result of a public that not only watches, but LIVES BY those horrid news channels like CNN and that pure scum of the scum of the pond: Fox news. But WE want LAWWWRRENORDER!!! And Criminals be damned!!
On a positive note my hat’s off to former Illinois governer George Ryan who had the BALLS to recind ALL death sentences (several hundred) because of a CORRUPT system, and that’s not just Illinois. Peoples lives are at stake!
April 29th, 2006 at 1:23 pm
if you think that the death penalty is about punishment, youre wrong. its about removing a piece of shit from society thats more than likely beyond rehabilitation and a danger to the general populace. put it in any words you wish but the bottom line is that society failed to program that waste of skin properly so therefore its up to society to terminate the existance of its aberrant child. the doctors wont do it? feel free to give me a call and ill do it pro bono. my only demand is that i get a black hood and an armani suit to match it.
May 10th, 2006 at 4:13 pm
Rusty - I’m with ya. . .on two points: One, the true criminals–and I’m talking about those who violate other individuals or property up to and including the taking of a life-ARE truly A P-I-E-C-E of S-H-I-T!! . . .AND I am NOT talking about what our corrupt judicial system says. Two: If that same individual violated you or one of your loved ones, I’d have NO PROBLEM with you taking the law into your own hands.
However, I am firmly AGAINST our corrupt STATE given the power to take another human being’s life. If our system were perfect I’d be first in line to administer the death penalty (OK, maybe second, after you); if the system were fair, ditto, but the system is FAR from perfect and almost always NEVER fair!!