Capital Punishment

It is worth recognising that in the USA, most prisons are run by private contractors who obviously have no incentive to rehabilitate or educate inmates. I had an interesting conversation once with a prison officer, and his experience of prisons being run on the cheap, using Serco/G4S staff. Yet another example of public service being run, badly, on the cheap, but putting money in pockets.

No I don't think it should be bought back. Examples are: in the past there have been set ups/wrongful guilt sentences.

Even with forensics and DNA it's not to say it couldn't happen again. If there was a situation where a bent copper wanted too, set someone up. I'm sure it would still be possible.

Given what is going in in the police atm you can't say it couldn't happen, as more and more comes to light.

Also my thinking is: would I be prepared to take a life even legally in law. The answer is no. I couldn't do it.

On that basis alone if I couldn't do it, I can't expect anyone else to do it.

As my late mom used to say "Two wrongs don't make a right" and "don't ask someone to do what you won't do yourself"

No, but I’m totally with Irishdancing, life should definitely mean life, even though it grieves me that the tax payer has to keep them.

I don't think that the death penalty is a deterrent or that it was ever viewed as such.

Before we demand longer prison sentences it could be useful to compare rates of imprisonment in different countries

World Prison Brief, www.prisonstudies.org compares rates of imprisonment per 100,000 population.

For England and Wales, the figure is 138, this compares well with USA which has the highest rate of 550 , Turkey at 374 and Albania at 177, but is higher than most European countries such as Spain at 116, France at 106, Italy at 96, Belgium at 91, Ireland at 86, Sweden at 74, Switzerland at 72, Germany at 67, Norway at 54 and Finland at 51.

Do we really want to be more like the USA? The USA not only has the highest rate of incarceration, but many states still have capital punishment yet the murder rate in the USA is four times higher than in the UK.

www.nationmaster.com/country-info/compare/United-Kingdom/United-States/Crime/Violent-crime

No

If it is wrong people to kill, and our laws support this, then it wrong for the judiciary to pass a sentence of death on any citizen.

I watched am American prog on the death penalty. Theory was it's not a deterent because A they don't think they will be caught or B it's a spontaneous crime without thought of the outcome.

No, but life should mean life.

No, capital punishment doesn't make any sense. If it is wrong to kill somebody then it is wrong, full stop.

Just to nitpick (since a few posts mention the mid-60s): the death penalty in the UK was abolished in 1998. The death penalty for murder was suspended in 1965 and abolished in 1969 in Great Britain and 1973 in Northern Ireland. It remained in place for espionage until 1981, and for treason and mutiny until 1998.

No never. As Albert Camus wrote, capital punishment is the most premeditated of murders.

The death penalty here in the Uk was abolished in 1965. The executioner Albert Pierrepoint said in his autobiography in 1974 that he didn’t think it was a deterrent.

fordk4

the death sence shpuld be brought back as knife crime in this country is now getting out of control and ther largest amount in in the youngrern generation it should be a minimum 10 years if you ate carring a knife or wepon and the death penity if you take the life of someone we mut show people if you carry awny wepon the tawe will punish you then maybe these people woll think twice before the attack any one this is the only way to stop people being killed

Can you explain - and show any evidence - why you believe the death penalty is a deterrent, when experience from around the world suggests otherwise?

For example, prior to the Canada abolishing the death penalty in 1976, the reported murder rate was going up; it fell steadily afterwards, so that 25 years on it was down 43%. There have been even larger declines of up to 60% in the homicide rate in countries of Central and Eastern Europe after they scrapped the death penalty in the 1990s.

However, if you have evidence to show differently, I’d be interested to see it.

Obviously, it’d be worth exploring, before blithely suggesting we let the state murder young people, why there has been an increase in knife crime, but that’s not the topic of this thread.

For the record: I would not support capital punishment, I just try to rationalise and dispel misconceptions about how it all works. There are so many untruths and madey uppy "facts" out there that the mob are increasingly at risk of being corralled by those who seek to use our humanity against us , we all abhor the disgusting criminals who afflict society, we need to bite the bullet and make sure we deal with the consequences in an effective and socially acceptable manner, and not keep doing things "on the cheap" .justice should be a cross party issue same as NHS in the interest of stability continuity and successful outcomes for society in general.no fear.no favour.no egos.

It's a relief to see that most of the people posting on this thread are clear that the death penalty is beyond unacceptable. If we think killing people is wrong - why would we kill someone for killing someone?

No, because there is a chance of a mistaken conviction, many of which are now well-documented.

Anniebach

Timothy Evans. Derek Bentley and many others , innocent but
hanged

And both terrible cases of their times. No assessment no forensics no proper defence no chance. Thankfully not the case now.

Dinahmo

I can't imagine that Carrick will survive his life sentence in prison. I think he's made some attempts at suicide already although half heartedly. Being an ex policeman and a sex offender there will be several other prisoners who will try to get at him.

He'll be on segregated wing reserve for ex job prisoners. Not necessarily for his safety as much as the avoidance of attempts to kill /attack him which have to b managed by the staff, they don't set store by keeping him safe more o keep the peace overall. He didn't kill anyway so he wouldn't be subjected to death penalty.

Not likely. Murderers murder. All do what they do and very very rarely kill, it's a special crime and unless accidentally burglars don't kill neither do rapists etc. If the intention is there, ones own children will kill us without being guilty of anything else!
Assuming they'll take the "may as well be hung for a horse as a sheep" tack is unfounded

To the couple of new, strong advocates of capital punishment; it is not a deterrent. The prisons are full of people who thought they wouldn't get caught.

Varian- we don't! Next question?

Iam64

*don’t you think we should ask why our country has more prisoners per head of population than nearly all other first world countries*
Yes we should and many of us do. Our current government did its best to destroy any service that provided support to people who are in a trajectory to imprisonment. Their answer appears to be building more prisons.

Maybe, just maybe it's because we have a better catch rate? Thought of that? And a better legal system? And better police? I'd be very worried if we had the crime we do and the prison population was dropping!! Your assumption is Nonsensical and not factual

fordk4

the death sence shpuld be brought back as knife crime in this country is now getting out of control and ther largest amount in in the youngrern generation it should be a minimum 10 years if you ate carring a knife or wepon and the death penity if you take the life of someone we mut show people if you carry awny wepon the tawe will punish you then maybe these people woll think twice before the attack any one this is the only way to stop people being killed

Check your spelling m'dear hardly deciphered your post!😅

the death sence shpuld be brought back as knife crime in this country is now getting out of control and ther largest amount in in the youngrern generation it should be a minimum 10 years if you ate carring a knife or wepon and the death penity if you take the life of someone we mut show people if you carry awny wepon the tawe will punish you then maybe these people woll think twice before the attack any one this is the only way to stop people being killed