I would like to comment on the fact that many people who were formerly on death row have been exonherated after forensic evidence has found that they are in fact not guilty. Being that I plan on becoming a Forensic Scientist, I am very interested in this. I agree that in the past, there have been some that were executed for a crime they did not commit, though a case has never been documented (except of course black lynchings). The only reason that this is assumed is because of the many times over the last few years that some have been set free due to new forensic findings.
Considering that we now have highly trained crime scene technicians and forensic scientists, I believe that these will all but eliminate cases where an innocent is convicted. Cases where the death penalty would be involved (killing a police officer, killing more that one person, etc) are highly scrutinized. Plus, Christian Longo admitted killing at least two in his family and then partied it up in Mexico. This shows little regret on his part and he deserves whatever he gets.
Being a minority, and recognizing that the US disproportionately hands the death penalty out to minorities, I frequently am against it. However, there are certain cases where I believe it to be warranted. In the case where the murderer admits it, and it is proven that they did it, that person should suffer the ultimate penalty. All other arguments aside, no one has brought up the safety of society. There have been very recent cases of murderers escaping or being "accidentally" released from prison, and going on killing sprees. Before anyone else says it, I am aware that not all murderers are locked up, but once one is, the safety of society is more important than one person's "supposed" rights. I didn't actually post this to start an argument or even to discuss the merits of the death penalty, I posted it as a current event. But I can safely go on record as saying I don't automatically oppose it, and in some cases, I think it is the right thing to do. If there is a hell, I hope Christian Longo burns in it.
I agree that in the past, there have been some that were executed for a crime they did not commit, though a case has never been documented (except of course black lynchings).
Sorry, your information seems to be flawed;
Studies show that at least 400 innocent people have been convicted of capital crimes they did not commit and 23 of them have been executed.vi
