light Sunday morning question?

[Valigator]

Lately I have been reading alot on the hoopla surrounding the death penalty and lethal injection argument ...most of you know how I feel, I was curious as to what you thought of this argument. I also watched the CNN special about forensic testing and the controversy surrounding the labs and or, the credentials of those who perform these test....they stated that most of these labs are not regulated in any form, which surprised me and many who are performing these test dont have to have any particular credentials. Even one of the FBI Labs had a shoddy technician that falsified results....what do you think?

[Nulle]

That is a darn scary thought when a persons life hangs in the balance.
Far as the death penalty=if he is guilty "throw the switch"!
By the way Val we got that preditor last night I wrote you about.
We lured him in thinking he was going to meet a 13yr old girl and took his perverted butt to jail. I will send you more on this later.

[Swift]

A BIG 2 thumbs up for the death penalty!

[Valigator]

Glad you got him Nulle, guys who know they are meeting up with 13 year olds have a big problem...in this day and age with the repercussions being what they are...I would definitely have to say these guys arent the brightest bulbs in the boxes...I liken it to Natural Selection...they just seem to weed themselves out pretty quickly. I feel sorry for the families they drag down with them...Recieved a letter from the Mayor Sat. He invited me to speak before the town council on this subject. I have been a thorn in everyones side for a while on this subject...internet access being one of my main peaves for these guys..in Florida we will have a new law this year that will restrict that....I am a happpy girl...

[gmherps]

Originally posted by Swift
A BIG 2 thumbs up for the death penalty!

Me too, but for the right person (on the row that is.)

[fabsroman]

Val,

You know my position on the death sentence, but for those that don't, I am all for it if we are 100% sure that the person is guilty, not merely beyond a reasonable doubt.

I used to be completely for it, until I heard about a bunch of guys on Illinois' death row that were later found not guilty because we gained the ability to test DNA and therefore find out that they were not the rapists.

Another case that scared me was one where a doctor was found guilty of poisoning his wife. They wanted to give him the death sentence in that one, but he only ended up with life in prison. The entire verdict was based upon some new type of testing for this previously untraceable poison in the body. The test found that people that were poisoned by this specific type of poison showed some trace element of something else that is not normally found in the body. Well, after this case and testing were done, bunches of people were found guilty of poisoning their loved ones with this specific poison. An FBI analyst started to wonder about this, and he tested some bodies of people that died through gun shot wounds, heart attacks, cancer, etc. and he found the trace element in each of them. It appears that upon death, our body creates this trace element. Anyway, the doctor was let out of prison after a couple of years in there. I just wouldn't want that to be me thrown in jail when I am innocent and I definitely could not imagine me getting the death sentence if I was innocent.

It's not the guilty ones I am worried about, but the ones that happen to be innocent.

Like I said, I am all for the death penalty if we are 100% positive that they are guilty.

Now, what is the issue with lethal injection? Why is it being covered by CNN and what is the issue with these labs?

[Aim to maim]

Originally posted by fabsroman

Now, what is the issue with lethal injection? Why is it being covered by CNN and what is the issue with these labs?

Two different subjects, not directly related.

All major news outlets have been covering a California death penalty case wherein the "executionee" and his legal team last week convinced certain elements of the judiciary that lethal injection is cruel and unusual. They contend the combination of drugs used might permit the subject to experience pain prior to expiring. The execution has been postponed pending appeals by the state.

The other matter mentioned by Val is a piece of CNN investigative reporting regarding the lack of training, rigid standards and oversight of crime labs in general. Although I'm hardly a CNN fan, the questions raised by the report were valid ones.

[fabsroman]

Okay, if somebody deserves the death penalty, I say we just shoot them in the head or use a firing squad. A guillotine (sp.) would also ensure that they don't feel any pain. Plus, a lot more people would be scared of a guillotine or a firing squad than lethal injection.

As far as the crime labs are concerned, they should be held to extremely high standards, especially since somebody's life could be dependant upon their findings.