The Failed Pacifist

Kill the Death Penalty, Pt.1

Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens has spoken out about the "serious flaws" in the American death penalty system. Stevens, who has become the court's most liberal member as the panel shifts to the right, made the remarks over the weekend in the context of President Bush's nominee for the high court, John Roberts, and what might happen if he is elevated to Justice.

Last time I checked, a death row inmate is released, on average, about every 8-9 weeks. Supporters of the death penalty cite this as how the system is actually working (these inmates weren't executed, right?), and insist that no innocent person has ever been executed, at least since it was reinstated in 1976.

I've always been curious about what will happen when it's proven that an innocent has actually been executed. Who will be charged in that killing? The prosecutor who pursued the death penalty? The judge who allowed it? The legislators who wrote the laws? And who wants to bet that, when that day comes, the argument against charging these people with an innocent person's death will be something like "I really, really thought they were guilty".

posted by Doran @ 8:02 AM