Capital punishment

I cannot deny that our Judicial system is flawed, and has committed some horrible, irreversible mistakes. However, over the past decade or two, we have very much improved our forensic investigations, and more appeals are granted, to insure that the right criminal is punished. I don't think that every murderer should be executed. Just those who committed a horrendous crime, like that of an illegal immigrant in 1994.[1] In 1994, in the city of San Antonio Texas, illegal immigrant Humberto kidnapped, raped, and murdered 16 year old Adria Sauceda. She was bludgeoned to death a piece of asphalt, and was found with a 15 inch stick with a screwdriver in one end, protruding from her vagina. After 16 years of appeals, he was executed via lethal injection, even though President Obama urged the execution to be delayed. This is a perfect example of what I'm talking about. This was a heinous crime, and he was found guilty beyond any reasonable doubt (he was found with her blood on him, as well as in his car). In your examples of wrong execution, there was reason to believe that they were all innocent. I believe, however, that it should be reserved for heinous crimes where the suspect is guilty beyond all doubt. If there is any reason to doubt his guilt, life sentence, no parole. This is why we have appeals. The case of Humberto Leal is also an example of why I don't think some murderers should housed and fed for the rest of their lifes. It doesn't do any good. There is no changing them, and there is no reason to waste time and resources on people like him. Yes it is expensive, but in some cases it may not be, and it may be for the better good. One other case where the death penalty was justified was the case of Troy Davis [2]. I'm sure plenty of people remember this case, as he was executed only about 6 months ago, and it caused quite a ruckus thanks to race baiters like Al Sharpton, but to refresh memories, he was convicted of killing Mark MacPhail, a police officer, working at the time as a security guard. MacPhail attempted to break up a fight between a man and a homeless man. He was then shot twice, in the heart and the face. Witnesses saw Davis at the scene, and after searching Davis' home and Davis was found to have possessed the same clothes as the suspect, and owned a gun of the same caliber as the bullets that shot MacPhail. There were 34 witnesses, and the man who was in the scuffle with the homeless man said Davis had harassed him and his friend earlier in the evening, with a gun of the same caliber as the murder weapon. This is another case, the murder of a cop, that warrants the death penalty, and he was found guilty beyond any doubt (34 witnesses is more than sufficient in my opinion). So his execution was warranted. Now, I admit, there are problems with the death penalty. Other than the possibility of the wrong suspect being executed, it does cost a lot of money. Sometimes, more than it would have, had they houses the murderer for life, without parole. However, it can be fixed.1. Less executions In my opinion, not every murder warrants the death penalty. As mentioned in my previous argument, the murderer may not have known what he was doing. For example, DUI manslaughter. This is a terrible crime, that warrants a lengthy sentence, and possibly having their drivers license revoked for life, but not the death penalty. It should be reserved for either pre meditated murder, serial murders, murders of cops (possibly), and horrendous murders (such as the Humberto Leal case). Otherwise, a lengthy sentence, possibly life without parole.2. Speedier trials It is no secret lawyers love murder cases. It's a great chance for both the prosecutor and the defense attorneys to make a lot of money. So they will obviously ask for lengthy delays, and lots of appeals. Unless there is reason to believe that there is more evidence to gather, then there is no reason for the length of some delays that are granted. There also should be a limit in appeals. If a man is guilty beyond any doubt, then there is no reason to grant these numerous appeals. Again, referencing the Humberto Leal case, there were no other suspects, no more evidence to gather, and yet he was on death row for 14-15 years. Same for Troy Davis.The 6th amendment states that " "in all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy the right to a speedy . . . trial . . . ." [3] It's hard to argue that some of these trials on death row are "quick and speedy". Yes, you have lifes on the line, but there is a point where there is no doubt of the guilt of some criminals, and so the amount of appeals should be significantly lowered. ConclusionIn conclusion, I don't see any reason why the death penalty should be outlawed entirely. I think it should be used conservatively, but I think it should still be an option for punishment of some criminals. Sources[1] http://www.kcentv.com... http://en.wikipedia.org...[2] http://en.wikipedia.org...[3] http://en.wikipedia.org...