Shawna Forde gets death penalty

[kinvore.livejournal.com]

http://www.cnn.com/2011/CRIME/02/22/arizona.double.killing/?hpt=T2

I don't advocate the death penalty but I shed no tears for this woman. Here's the crux of the story: an anti-immigrant militant attacked a Latino family, killing the father and 9-year-old daughter (as she begged for her life), and shooting the mother who only survived because she pretended to die from the gunshot.

The murderers thought the father was a drug dealer and they wanted his money to finance their budding hate group. I guess that would have been a nifty recruiting tool for extremists, their willingness to kill Mexicans to get things done. Nevermind the fact that the victims were American-born citizens, such details are irrelevant when racial bigotry is concerned.

This is the sort of thing that happens when you fan the flames of hatred, dehumanization is the predecessor to atrocity. I'm surprised this didn't get more attention from the mainstream media, I guess they aren't as liberal as so many seem to think.

Comments

[yes-justice.livejournal.com]

Its a hard thing to accurately measure (http://www.innocenceproject.org/) especially when forbidden to investigate the cases retro-actively, as Bush did in Texas (http://nymag.com/daily/intel/2010/11/new_evidence_suggests_texas_ex.html).

The number is not zero (http://www.innocenceproject.org/Content/The_Innocent_and_the_Death_Penalty.php), however:

Seventeen people have been proven innocent and exonerated by DNA testing in the United States after serving time on death row. They were convicted in 11 states and served a combined 209 years in prison ? including 187 years on death row ? for crimes they didn?t commit.

• Kirk Bloodsworth served eight years in Maryland prisonincluding two years on death rowfor a murder and rape he didn?t commit, before he was exonerated in 1993.


• Rolando Cruz, and his co-defendant Alejandro Hernandez, served more than 10 years on Illinois death row for a murder they didn?t commit before DNA testing proved both men innocent in 1995.


• Verneal Jimerson and Dennis Williams were sentenced to death in the infamous Ford Heights Four case in Illinois for a pair of 1978 murders they didn?t commit. Jimerson was cleared in 1995 after a decade on death row and Williams served more than 17 years on death row before he was freed in 1996.


• Robert Miller spent nine years on Oklahoma?s death row for a murder and rape he didn?t commit before he was cleared by DNA testing in 1998.


• Ron Williamson spent a decade on Oklahoma?s death row for a murder he didn?t commit before DNA testing secured by the Innocence Project proved him innocent in 1999. His co-defendant, Dennis Fritz, was sentenced to life and spent 11 years in prison before DNA cleared him as well.


• Ronald Jones, an Innocence Project client, served a decade on Illinois death row for a murder and rape he didn?t commit before DNA testing proved his innocence and led to his release in 1999.


• Earl Washington, a Virginia man with limited mental capacity, was sentenced to death after he allegedly confessed to committing a 1982 murder he didn?t commit. He served a decade on death row, once coming within nine days of execution before receiving a stay. He would serve a total of 17 years behind bars before DNA testing obtained by the Innocence Project cleared him in 2000.


• Frank Lee Smith died of cancer on Florida?s death row after serving 14 years for a murder and rape he didn?t commit. He was cleared by DNA testing obtained by the Innocence Project 11 months after his death.


• Charles Irvin Fain served more than 17 years on death row in Idaho for a murder and rape he didn?t commit before DNA testing proved his innocence in 2001.


• Ray Krone served a decade in Arizona prisonincluding four years on death rowfor a murder and rape he didn?t commit before DNA testing proved his innocence in 2002.


• Nicholas Yarris served more than 21 years on Pennsylvania?s death row before DNA testing proved his innocence and led to his release in 2003.


• Ryan Matthews served five years on Louisiana?s death row for a murder he didn?t commit before he was exonerated by DNA testing in 2004. His co-defendant, Travis Hayes, was sentenced to life in prison and served eight years before he was cleared in 2007.


• Curtis McCarty served 21 years in Oklahoma prisonincluding nearly 18 years on death rowfor a murder he didn?t commit before DNA tests secured by the Innocence Project led to his exoneration in 2007. He was convicted twice and sentenced to death three times based on forensic misconduct.


• Kennedy Brewer, an Innocence Project client, served 15 years behind barsincluding seven years on death rowfor a murder and sexual assault he didn?t commit before DNA testing from 2001 finally led to his exoneration in 2008.


• Michael Blair served 13 years on death row for a murder he didn?t commit before DNA testing obtained by his lawyers at the Innocence Project proved his innocence and led to his exoneration in 2008.

Thank you.

[geezer-also.livejournal.com]

Since I had a vague idea of the statistics (just not very good at finding stuff, but I am getting better)
I have considered this in forming my opinion, and I am still in favor or the death penalty.

(at the rate I'm going tonight, I will never get back to your comments from the other day...just so you know I didn't completely ignore them, but this is more immediate)

Re: Thank you.

[yes-justice.livejournal.com]

Thanks, take your time, no worries.

Are you pro-choice, I forget?

Re: Thank you.

[geezer-also.livejournal.com]

No, but I'm not completely anti-abortion....I get taken to task by both sides, but oh well.....