Politics The Death Penalty
posted by on August 2 at 14:08 PM
A commenter in the post about the KC Prosecutor race asks:
Anyone ask these guys about the death penaly? Satterberg says he’ll continue with Maleng’s approach, yes but rare. Do these dems have any guts?
We asked the Democratic contenders about the death penalty during our ed board endorsement interview.
Despite our Scully endorsement, Sherman’s answer—we hype it in our write up on the race—was actually better than Scully’s answer.
From the transcript of our interview:
Bill Sherman: I support a gubernatorial moratorium on the death penalty while we take a hard look at the disparity and due process issues. Wouldn’t rule it out as a rule. But KC hasn’t executed anyone in decades. It holds out false hope for families of victims. We need to be looking at it in terms of racial and economic disparity.Keith Scully: I’m not philosophically Opposed to death penalty but there’s a huge disparity in crimes that get death. A better alternative to two strikes and you’re out is life sentence with the possibility to get out at some point. I would seek the death penalty only in Green River type cases. It’s not enough that victims want closure to seek death penalty.
So what if Conner Schierman had tiny toddler bite marks on his arms from the two little boys of the family of four that he mudered and burned down their house in Kirkland.
Trial probably postponed till after election time so I am sure Schierman is rooting for the Stranger's opposition to the death penalty and influence on the election.
I was leaning Sherman anyhow, but this answer alone seals the deal. "not philosophically opposed" to the death penalty? Scully should explain. That's bullshit. It's time the US, but especially King County moved into the modern world. Sounds like at least on this issue, Scully, no matter how young, live in his grandfather's world of social justice.
Sherman's right on for his statement that the death penalty offers false hope for the families of victims. All the death penalty system does is extend the agony of the crime for a decade or more, as the killer goes through appeal after appeal after habeas petition after petition. I did death penalty work in Washington and it was obvious how shattering it was for the families to have the Ninth Circuit or the Supreme Court issue a last-minute stay of execution, or (worse yet) overturn the sentence after 12 or 14 years.
There is no justification for the death sentence in retribution, and there certainly is none in terms of penal justice, given the chance of a wrongful or even corrupt conviction.
That's because Bill Sherman's the better candidate. This is one of only two races you got wrong on endorsements.
You endorsed the candidate with the nonsensical answer? Good move.
@6,
Death Penalty wasn't our only issue. Please read the endorsement.
I'm not just snarking on the death penalty issue. This quotation demonstrates a startling inability on Scully's part to express what he's talking about. Why did he bring up two strikes? I also believe it's traditional to use a definite article when talking about the death penalty.
The answers are as different as night and day. Sherman: knows his shit. Scully: either doesn't know his shit or speaks English as a second language.
Revenge is just a lazy form of grief.
Dick Cheney makes the Green River Killer look like Goldilocks.
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