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Stanley Tookie, capital punishment,
etc.
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[DEC. 13, 2005]
As of 4:22 p.m. on Monday, common sense has prevailed. Of course,
between now and 12:01 a.m. Tuesday it may be
reversed, but that can be addressed at another time.
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I fully support the governor's denial of Tookie's appeal for
clemency. Actually it isn't even his appeal. According to the press
reports, he is reconciled to the sentence, so it must be all those
liberals out there interjecting their personal views into the
situation. They seem to have no place in their hearts for the four
poor souls who were the victims.
On the one hand we hear the claims that Tookie has rehabilitated
himself, and if what he has done is not enough, then no one can ever
rehabilitate themselves.
In my humble opinion, this case has nothing to do with
rehabilitation.
The death penalty is all about the punishment fitting the crime.
Society allows for all kinds of punishments short of death for a
myriad of crimes. Judges, appeals courts and parole boards alter
sentences all the time, based upon rehabilitation claims, valid or
not, by criminals who have been duly convicted, and they are allowed
years and decades of appeals and reconsiderations.
[to top of second column]
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 The few crimes for which the death penalty is allowed and the
even rarer application of that punishment are reserved for truly
abhorrent situations. The application of this penalty is not a value
judgment about good and bad. It is simply about punishment. No
matter how much a guilty party may "rehabilitate" themselves in the
eyes of others, they must pay the ultimate price.
Tookie provided no opportunity for any rehabilitation for the
victims, so why should we extend that courtesy to him?
Let the punishment fit the crime.
["Nom de plume"]
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