Death Penalty Vs Life in Prison and Why

[Whisperer]

My fear is that w/e she gets, there is still going to be drama. I predict she will cuddle up to a male C.O....and that only can lead to trouble, big trouble.

I wonder how many C.Os will lose their job during her stay in the Correctional Facility..

 

[Kat]

You know, I minored in Theology in college, and I just throw this out there for consideration (it is not an indication of my personal religious beliefs).

For those that support the death penalty, what if there is no after-life? If we sentence Casey to death, doesn't she win because she has a quick and painless death - never to know or feel long term suffering and wasting away into old age?

Without a belief in an afterlife, does the rationale for the death penalty as the ultimate punishment still survive?

I do not believe in an afterlife. And because of that (I won't go into my religious/spiritual beliefs here but I will say that in my mind) I think that the death penalty is the ultimate punishment - even more so- than believing that she would go into the hereafter and face another judgment as well.

I do not see old age as wasting away though or long term suffering. It is a process and a stage of life. Just like death.

No she doesn't win with a quick and painless death. It might be quick but do we really know without a shadow of a doubt that it would be painless? Is any death of a healthy, vibrantly alive human being painless?

Because of my beliefs for me death is final and to take away from her---her consciousness and experience of life itself---is indeed the ultimate punishment.

Also as an aside, I am thinking she won't get the DP now that she threw the incest card down on the table. Doesn't matter if it happened or not, it's a card no one really wants to argue with JMHO. She may not even get LWOP. Just my thoughts as of today. (doesn't mean I don't want her to get those sentences, means I'm not seeing that they will be given) JMHO.

ETA: actually I see this argument as one based on the supposition that the contemplator has a belief in the afterlife and is trying to imagine what it is to not believe in one. If one has taken the leap of faith to believe such IMHO and only IMHO then it is impossible to back out of that leap of faith and contemplate the question as one that doesn't and has never believed. KWIM? I deeply respect those that have made that leap. Seriously and genuinely. Good question though. But it is a theological question

 

[farrahrani]

I love reading a lot of the different arguments here, and found some new opinions I'd never seen before. I haven't read everything but what I have has been interesting.

I believe in THIS case, she should get the death penalty. I don't believe in it for every case, each case is unique. I am sorry for the length, I just felt this running around in my head after reading so many responses >.<

1. She has no remorse. If seeing pictures of her baby girl cannot bring out tears for what the world has lost, for what her parents have lost, for the future schoolgirl days, Mother's day handmade cards, cuddling in bed and just hearing her voice in the morning, now gone forever, I don't see that she really cared for her baby.

2. She will not be a martyr for the against death penalty cause.
Andrea Lyons, the self proclaimed 'angel of death row' who has become vilified by those who have heard her insulting jurists and the legal system in one of her convention lectures, who will stoop at nothing to win a case, has abandoned this one. That alone should tell you that if a professional like this woman who has an unblemished record would just walk away, there can be little to nothing redeeming in ICA that could compel her to work toward swaying the court to LWOP.

3. She is a sociopath.
She will adapt to life in prison, whether in genpop or in solitary. She is a survivor and will manage fine eventually and at some point reach a level of comfort and acceptance in her situation, and will begin to thrive.
She will only EVER regret getting caught, not what she did. She cannot feign emotion as she does not understand human emotion, and has never been exposed to normal behavior. It's obvious from the jail tapes.
Laughing and,
"why is mom crying already" (I'm ok, I'm safe, why is she crying?)

Her mood flips on the first phone jailhouse call depending on who she was dealing with. Patronizing and conciliatory toward Christine, combative with Lee, and never behaving in a way that shows concern for her family, if not for the child who she knows is dead. It is IMPOSSIBLE for her to even pretend to be normal, to show compassion, or to even consider anyone else.

Her biggest fear is the needle, I say let her have it.

 

[carole]

I love reading a lot of the different arguments here, and found some new opinions I'd never seen before. I haven't read everything but what I have has been interesting.

I believe in THIS case, she should get the death penalty. I don't believe in it for every case, each case is unique. I am sorry for the length, I just felt this running around in my head after reading so many responses >.<

1. She has no remorse. If seeing pictures of her baby girl cannot bring out tears for what the world has lost, for what her parents have lost, for the future schoolgirl days, Mother's day handmade cards, cuddling in bed and just hearing her voice in the morning, now gone forever, I don't see that she really cared for her baby.

2. She will not be a martyr for the against death penalty cause.
Andrea Lyons, the self proclaimed 'angel of death row' who has become vilified by those who have heard her insulting jurists and the legal system in one of her convention lectures, who will stoop at nothing to win a case, has abandoned this one. That alone should tell you that if a professional like this woman who has an unblemished record would just walk away, there can be little to nothing redeeming in ICA that could compel her to work toward swaying the court to LWOP.

3. She is a sociopath.
She will adapt to life in prison, whether in genpop or in solitary. She is a survivor and will manage fine eventually and at some point reach a level of comfort and acceptance in her situation, and will begin to thrive.
She will only EVER regret getting caught, not what she did. She cannot feign emotion as she does not understand human emotion, and has never been exposed to normal behavior. It's obvious from the jail tapes.
Laughing and,
"why is mom crying already" (I'm ok, I'm safe, why is she crying?)

Her mood flips on the first phone jailhouse call depending on who she was dealing with. Patronizing and conciliatory toward Christine, combative with Lee, and never behaving in a way that shows concern for her family, if not for the child who she knows is dead. It is IMPOSSIBLE for her to even pretend to be normal, to show compassion, or to even consider anyone else.

Her biggest fear is the needle, I say let her have it.

BBM

My biggest question about this video comment as a juror would be -- CASEY, WHY AREN'T YOU CRYING????????????????

Your tiny, precious, 2 year daughter is missing and the first thing you think to say isn't - has anyone heard anything, have they found her, I can't live if she isn't found, what's wrong with ZFG anyway, kidnapping her, any tips, what are the police saying, etc, etc, etc -- all in a frantic, breathless manner.

Instead you make fun of your mother's emotions because her granddaughter is missing (not to mention her daughter is in jail).

When Casey told Lee that she was a spiteful b!tch, she obviously was TELLING THE TRUTH. And it is the only truth she has told so far.

 

[mac66]

Before I re-watched all the jail house videos and realized how many thousands of people she has affected, I was okay with LWOP. When I think about the searchers and the police on their hands and knees looking for little bones, and every person who ever knew Caylee, or read about her, how dare Casey lie without regard for ANYONE??? She is an evil soul. She would kill again if the circumstances presented. She has deeply hurt our society. Extinguish her.

 

[Justin Tyme]

My fear is that w/e she gets, there is still going to be drama. I predict she will cuddle up to a male C.O....and that only can lead to trouble, big trouble.

I wonder how many C.Os will lose their job during her stay in the Correctional Facility..

She'll have a new "captive" audience of that I'm sure. She's going to wreck havoc upon the prison system. Maybe she'll even get her wish of becoming and event planner.:floorlaugh:

 

[Nali87]

LIFE.
Death's too quick.

 

[Justin Tyme]

Death is sometimes quick. A lot of people might think that she should spend the rest of her life in prison and suffer. But sadly in ICA's case she wouldn't be suffering as one has to have a conscious to do so...and as we've seen, she has none. She'd just carry on where she left off, (meant to say with what she's always done and continues to do) {she hasn't left off} just with a new cast of characters and victims that she leaves in her wake.

 

[The Farm]

My option for Casey is the Death Penalty.

 

[pip]

LWOP. I don't believe she will get the DP. I would prefer her to have LWOP anyway. Much worse than the DP for most.

 

[dunlurken]

LIFE.
Death's too quick.

I agree.

 

[pip]

My fear is that w/e she gets, there is still going to be drama. I predict she will cuddle up to a male C.O....and that only can lead to trouble, big trouble.

I wonder how many C.Os will lose their job during her stay in the Correctional Facility..

And if she does, they SHOULD lose their jobs. There is a bevy of Correctional dysfunction...I say weed em' out. If they aren't savvy enough to know they are being lured in by a sociopath, they are a risk to the institution and should find another career path. If they can't say NO to an offer of sex, they should work elsewhere, this is also a risk to the institution. No doubt she will still be driven to work the system, including finding a willing sex partner/s..and weak links for favors and special privileges, it's a given. Just one of the other 500 or so in there doing the same.

 

[jane the dood]

She'll have a new "captive" audience of that I'm sure. She's going to wreck havoc upon the prison system. Maybe she'll even get her wish of becoming and event planner.:floorlaugh:

:behindbar
Heh heh!

But seriously....

I am not opposed to the death penalty; I keep picturing the horror, terror and pain that victims suffer in their last minutes of life. They certainly are not - like Florida's death row inmates - "put to sleep," like you would a beloved pet. And if Caylee Marie suffocated to death and was shuttled around as she struggled from her short life to an untimely death at the hands of her mother, then CA certainly deserves that fate.

THAT SAID....I think life imprisonment with NO chance of parole would be a more fitting punishment for this sociopath. Solitary confinement. Prison food. No contact with the family she has shamed and humiliated. She should spend the rest of her miserable life in a box, losing her youth, her looks and her "fans." Yep ... that would work for me.

Even if she DOES receive the DP, she will sit on death row for 20 years, while the State endures appeal after appeal, before they finally give her the needle.

I just want her OFF the streets and OUT of the limelight!

*gets off soapbox*
:twocents:

 

[cluciano63]

If she gets the DP, she will not be out of the news in many of our lifetimes...if she gets LWOP, she will make some news now and then when she gets a violation or files some complaint about the food or the pillows or the clothing...but not on any kind of basis where she will be attracting sympathy. On the other hand the DP will bring out the whole host of folks who make it their hobby to communicate with death row inmates, take a stand against the DP, and those who will want to start with the diminshed capacity, etc...all of which will keep her in the news.

LWOP is much more likely to garner her less attention in the long run, which she will hate.

 

[farrahrani]

I dunno. I think if she gets DP, once she's really gone, she'll just be a wiki page and that will be about it.

Frankly SHE would rather get lwop, than DP, and I think the reverse should be the perfect punishment for her. If she WANTED the dp, full of remorse and pain and agony over the suffering she has caused everyone, then I might be tempted to say give her life. But her fun with 'cookie' or muffin or whatever the heck that baked goods chick in teh next cell was, passing letters planning her RV ministry tour and all that crap...she'd have a fine time with lwop, socializing and daydreaming and munching her days away to a size fifty.

I say just finish this, give her dp and be done

 

[Rail_Tracer]

I think we should remember that the DP, although it has its uses, is always a sad end to a very sad story. I don't feel it is right to ever cheer the death of any human being, no matter what terrible crime they committed....even if they do display a shocking lack of remorse.

Because once a person is gone, they've forever lost the chance to change, to become remorseful, and to ever attempt to become a better human being.

Having said that, IMO I don't think KC is capable of becoming a better human being. But stranger things have happened.

In KC's case, I'm not sure if I can agree with those who call her evil. Her acts are evil. I'm not trying to be snarky, but I'm not sure if I'd even consider her wholly human. I truly think she's missing some piece of herself, biologically. That piece that makes the difference between us and animals. Although, I dunno... some animals seem to show more empathy than KC ever has.

I don't think she was abused. She probably is a sociopath. IMO, she was either born that way or became that way early on and I don't think it was anyone's fault. I feel bad for her family. I feel bad for her friends. I feel bad for anybody who may have ever loved KC and who are just now realizing that she probably didn't love them back. And of course, there is no truer victim than Caylee.

But I don't think KC can control what she is. Personally, I think she shouldn't be "punished" with the DP. Rather, since the likelihood of redemption of KC is so low, she should leave this world by way of the DP because society has so little to gain by her staying in it.

 

[cluciano63]

I dunno. I think if she gets DP, once she's really gone, she'll just be a wiki page and that will be about it.

Frankly SHE would rather get lwop, than DP, and I think the reverse should be the perfect punishment for her. If she WANTED the dp, full of remorse and pain and agony over the suffering she has caused everyone, then I might be tempted to say give her life. But her fun with 'cookie' or muffin or whatever the heck that baked goods chick in teh next cell was, passing letters planning her RV ministry tour and all that crap...she'd have a fine time with lwop, socializing and daydreaming and munching her days away to a size fifty.

I say just finish this, give her dp and be done

This isn't the case; if she gets the DP, she will be in appeals for at least 10-15 years...maybe get her sentence changed to LWOP in the end after costing even more money in the courts. If she gets LWOP, she can appeal the verdict, but without reversible error, she will basically be done. The dP will keep her in our faces a whole lot longer...and keep her in the spotlight.

 

[PeteyGirl]

My personal opinion (if I made the rules ) would be to not sentence ICA to death. There are plenty of others who I would consider worthy of the death penalty, and would "pull the lever myself" for. But not for ICA. It will hurt her family too much, and her family has been hurt enough already.

ICA doesn't deserve the privilege of living free in society. She is the poster child for someone who needs to be locked up to prevent further harm coming from her, but that's about it. She isn't a spree killer or a child rapist/killer. Her life of causing destruction and tragedy is OVER, thank God, and the price has already been overpaid.

It galls me to "know" that ICA will have a just splendiferous time with LWOP in a nice women's prison for the next sixty or seventy years. She'll get a girlfriend, a little job, and like a cockroach, live as well in a ghetto kitchen as Martha Stewart's. She will barely notice the difference. She won't "suffer". But there's nothing to be done for that.

Like I said in another thread, true Justice would be served if ICA could be given a functioning conscience for the first time in her life. So she'd have no filters between her and what she's DONE, to Caylee and to her family and what a disgusting blotch she's discolored the human race with.

LWOP for ICA preserves OUR humanity while containing her to prevent her destroying any more people's lives than she already has. And in this world, it seems to me that this is as good as it's gonna get.

 

[2goldfish]

I do not think KC will get the death penalty. I think she deserves it, but I have never heard of a mother being sentenced to death for killing her child. I would not have a problem with Life in prison if it in fact means LIFE IN PRISON. I have a gnawing in my gut that says not only will she not get the DP, but she will get out early, somehow. And really, KC is IMO very dangerous and should never be free in society again.

A new gnawing, however, is that she might not even be convicted. It's making me sick!

darlie routier.

 

[BlOnDe_GuRrL]

When this tread first started, I voted for LWOP because of all the "unknowns" in this case.

After watching JB's opening statement and realizing how evil his client truly is, I vote for death. People like her can not be rehabilitated... I should know.. half my family's just like her.