OT:the world is a complicated place…

[scaredyclassic]

although the death penalty was not repealed, apparently a poll among people on death row showed they were in favor of keeping the death penalty. Not because they wanted to die, but because they wanted the enhanced legal review and better legeal services afforded death penalty recipients. In other words, if you didn’t do it, you’d probably want to get the death penalty, so your case gets a long hard look and fight!

the world is a complicated place…whatever one’s intuition is about what someone else wants and why is often way off…

[bearishgurl]

Absolutely, scaredy. As I stated a couple of weeks ago in:

http://piggington.com/ot_ramifications_of_the_passing_of_props_34_and_36

… the state (namely AB-233 funds) are paying for death penalty appeals. Since death row inmates are going to sit in prison regardless, they feel they may as well have an attorney in their corner somewhere working on their behalf. Since they are not entitled to be paroled, they have nothing to lose and everything to gain, including “free” room, board, medical and dental care.

It takes 25-30 years between checking into death row and actually being “executed” (if that day ever comes). It is more likely that they die (of natural causes or disease) on death row.

A fraction of 1% are released due to later being retried and found innocent of the capital crime which landed them on death row in the first place.

Even though these appeals cost CA taxpayers a fortune and CA superior courts have had to make so many cuts in services over recent months (the latest is cutting out court reporters in more than half of courtrooms), CA voters just can’t stomach abolishing the death penalty.

[Oni Koroshi]

I’m in favor of the death penalty but I never knew that the death penalty was such a financial burden on the state for such an ineffective task.

California has spent $4 billion since ’78 to execute 14 people. I think a majority of people wrongly believe that the death penalty is cheaper than keeping people in jail for life. I wish the proponents of this bill would have adddressed the financial affects more.

[bearishgurl]

Does the voting public realize that the vast majority of these (public or public-contract) attorneys who file and work on these death-penalty appeals for years are actually at or over retirement age?

If the death penalty was abolished in CA, these “senior attys” could just “retire.” The majority of them are contracted by the state so are ineligible for a public pension.

[spdrun]

Thing is, innocent people have been executed. Ask Cameron Todd Willingham in TX. Oh wait, you can’t cos he was murdered by the state.

Simple solution – make the maximum sentence life WITH parole. Exculpatory evidence can then be presented to the parole board as well as the courts.

[paramount]

I don’t think our legal system is that fair, end the death penalty. End state murder.

[bearishgurl]

[quote=Oni Koroshi]I’m in favor of the death penalty but I never knew that the death penalty was such a financial burden on the state for such an ineffective task.

California has spent $4 billion since ’78 to execute 14 people. I think a majority of people wrongly believe that the death penalty is cheaper than keeping people in jail for life. I wish the proponents of this bill would have addressed the financial affects more.[/quote]

Oni, if this is true, then it actually cost the state $285,714,285.71 for each death row inmate who was executed in the last 35 years. Does this include the cost of his/her “solitary” cell (w/around-the-clock private or “semi-private” CDC vested-employee-guard?) and also weekly psychiatric sessions … as well as their “sometimes attorney” in another county working “diligently” on their appeal)?

Even if the expense is somewhat less than this for the duration of the life of each incarcerated DR inmate, I can see here that CA voters didn’t “do the math” before casting their votes. They cast them “emotionally” because they felt it was “the right thing to do.”

There’s nothing precluding this issue be brought back before CA voters in ~2 years with (simple) emphasis on the actual FISCAL impact to the state. I believe discussing the actual NUMBERS will sway voters to abolish it. The “death penalty” one of the biggest scam-money-pits this state has ever engaged in (and there are others).

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