AWESOME PSA Ann! In addition to the excellent points you make I think it should be mentioned that another tactic the anti-death penalty groups use is The Endless Appeal Process, where appeal after appeal is demanded not because anybody has new evidence or there was a substantive error in the trial but simply to drive the costs to the taxpayer up to such astronomical levels that the bill can be used later by these groups as a cudgel to beat the already- overtaxed citizens over the head with and gin up support for the anti-death penalty cause. Prosecutors too...it becomes a point of consideration whether to seek the death penalty or not when you know that it will cost the State "X" millions of dollars and take 20 years to wind its way through the courts....and when all is said and done all of the victim's family members have passed away, waiting for justice. "Justice delayed is justice denied" and by denying justice again and again, public confidence in the justice system as a whole is weakened, just as you say.
Your point about DNA evidence frequently giving these anti death penalty groups information that they don't want reminds me of the push by the ACLU and others to mandate body cameras for Police. This was originally done with the idea that the cameras would expose wrongdoing by police and help these groups to prosecute cops but the precise opposite happened...most frequently the cameras show that the Officers have followed the law and have acted appropriately while the video has frequently been used to prove the guilt of the perpetrators...not at all what these groups had in mind.
Ann, I'm so glad that you have this substack, so that you're express yourself freely without being edited or interrupted and I've even more glad that I'm a subscriber! 😊
My dad was a state supreme court justice for 25 years until 1993. He told me he never once questioned whether the inmate on death row was wrongly convicted. The evidence was overwhelming.
Remember all those innocent criminals saved from systemic unjust, fulfillment of their prison sentences by the Jared, ivanka and Donald criminal justice reform act of treachery.
I really do struggle with the "death" penalty. I've always been in support of it, but then I feel that in the spiritual sense we shouldn't really be deciding who should live and who should die.
the death penalty is supposed to protect the rest of us from that person. meaning... to be sure no Democrat ever gets into power and decides to let all the lifers go, or to give them weekend furloughs so they can go out and have some fun raping and killing.
Harry Connick Sr. ignored exculpatory evidence that would have freed a black man convicted of rape, for 30 years, and who was ultimately freed by DNA evidence.
Connick Sr. is the POS who succeeded Jim Garrison and destroyed all the evidence from the JFK case.
AWESOME PSA Ann! In addition to the excellent points you make I think it should be mentioned that another tactic the anti-death penalty groups use is The Endless Appeal Process, where appeal after appeal is demanded not because anybody has new evidence or there was a substantive error in the trial but simply to drive the costs to the taxpayer up to such astronomical levels that the bill can be used later by these groups as a cudgel to beat the already- overtaxed citizens over the head with and gin up support for the anti-death penalty cause. Prosecutors too...it becomes a point of consideration whether to seek the death penalty or not when you know that it will cost the State "X" millions of dollars and take 20 years to wind its way through the courts....and when all is said and done all of the victim's family members have passed away, waiting for justice. "Justice delayed is justice denied" and by denying justice again and again, public confidence in the justice system as a whole is weakened, just as you say.
Your point about DNA evidence frequently giving these anti death penalty groups information that they don't want reminds me of the push by the ACLU and others to mandate body cameras for Police. This was originally done with the idea that the cameras would expose wrongdoing by police and help these groups to prosecute cops but the precise opposite happened...most frequently the cameras show that the Officers have followed the law and have acted appropriately while the video has frequently been used to prove the guilt of the perpetrators...not at all what these groups had in mind.
LOVE your Substack, Ann! Full steam ahead! :-)
Ann should tweet out those obnoxious “I f’ing love science!” memes every time DNA evidence proves someone in prison is a murderer.
Excellence in Podcasting, perfect sound quality and great presentation.
Ann, I'm so glad that you have this substack, so that you're express yourself freely without being edited or interrupted and I've even more glad that I'm a subscriber! 😊
My dad was a state supreme court justice for 25 years until 1993. He told me he never once questioned whether the inmate on death row was wrongly convicted. The evidence was overwhelming.
Good job Ann !
Ann, you're so FUNNY!
Erudite…
Remember all those innocent criminals saved from systemic unjust, fulfillment of their prison sentences by the Jared, ivanka and Donald criminal justice reform act of treachery.
I'm having audio/video sync problems with this podcast. Don't know if my experiences are unique or not. Brave browser.
I will want Ann to write some fiction.
political thrillers.
crime/justice thrillers.
maybe even non-fiction true crime.... she could write about these kinds of cases in more detail.
or maybe fiction, but inspired by these kinds of cases.
I think that we do need a "death" penalty.
but for those truely heinous crimes, maybe we need a "brutal death" penalty.
Antony Babington: "I am...to die today."
Richard Topcliffe: "Indeed you are, brave Sir Antony."
I really do struggle with the "death" penalty. I've always been in support of it, but then I feel that in the spiritual sense we shouldn't really be deciding who should live and who should die.
the death penalty is supposed to protect the rest of us from that person. meaning... to be sure no Democrat ever gets into power and decides to let all the lifers go, or to give them weekend furloughs so they can go out and have some fun raping and killing.
Harry Connick Sr. ignored exculpatory evidence that would have freed a black man convicted of rape, for 30 years, and who was ultimately freed by DNA evidence.
Connick Sr. is the POS who succeeded Jim Garrison and destroyed all the evidence from the JFK case.
I think in the little farming town where my Mom grew up, trial procedure wasn't an issue. Rapists and murderers didn't make it past the front door.