New Jersey Senate bans the death penalty

[malaise]

Thank you! Thank you!

[Mike03]

1. Whoa! A glimmer of enlightenment!

This is promising news indeed; and I've heard that three other states may be close to doing the same, although I don't know which states those are.

Thanks for the good news!

[brentspeak]

2. I'm a NJ resident who doesn't want the DP in NJ banned

This is not a state that has a history of sending innocent people to the electric chair. In fact, no one has been executed in NJ since the early 1960's. For all anyone knows, some crime victims might have had their lives spared by criminals because the existence of the death penalty gave them something to think about. But now every criminal in NJ will soon be reading the headlines, "NJ abolishes death penalty."

[allthingsimportant]

4. also a nj resident

and damn happy to hear this. i don't want one dime of my tax dollars to be paying to murder people. we are not living in the stone ages, an eye for an eye was so three thousand years ago.

[Beetwasher]

6. Funny

I seem to recall you being one of the more outspokenly religious DU'ers around. Would Jesus support the death penalty?

This is a moral decision that I highly support, as a NJ resident. Good for NJ, finally joining most of the rest of the civilized world and banning barbarism.

"For all anyone knows, some crime victims might have had their lives spared by criminals because the existence of the death penalty gave them something to think about."

This is idiotic. "For all anyone knows" my magic rock might have spared you from being hit by a meteorite. :eyes:

For all anyone knows, the death penalty might make some kids think that it's ok to kill people, since the state does it too.

[MnFats]

7. look at the literature....criminals do not check the DP status of states;''

'''when chosing places to make mayhem.
it clearly DOES NOT reduce homicides.....and then you have the case of Ted Bundy , who DID ask around about states that impose the death penalty befoe deciding to head for Florida...

[brentspeak]

13. No criminal is the same

All we know is that the existence of the death penalty didn't prevent those who committed murder from committing murder.

NJ doesn't need to ban or put a moratorium on the death penalty. Some states, like Texas, might, because of the well-documented prosecutorial abuses of the DP in that state. But NJ isn't Texas. Banning the death penalty in NJ is enacting a solution in search of a problem.

[Beetwasher]

15. What A Load Of Crap

"NJ doesn't need to ban or put a moratorium on the death penalty."

NJ doesn't NEED the death penalty. Banning it is a moral statement and the right thing to do. Period.

You have no facts at all to back up your bullshit. I'm glad NJ listens to it's saner citizens.

"Banning the death penalty in NJ is enacting a solution in search of a problem."

No, it's not. It's acknowledging that it is wrong to have the death penalty. Period. The death of one innocent person anywhere in the country because of the death penalty is enough of a reason to ban it everywhere.

[malaise]

16. Well said n/t

[brentspeak]

17. What "facts" are you citing?

None. All you have to offer is ad hominem. Nasty ad hominem, I should say.

[Beetwasher]

19. LOL!! Umm, Chester, it's YOUR CLAIM

YOU say the death penalty is a deterrent. Put up or shut up. If it's not a deterrent (it's not), then it is at BEST a useless tactic that does nothing, and at WORST it is responsible for the deaths of innocent people. I got news for you. It's both. It's useless as a deterrent AND it's responsible for the deaths of innocent people.

So, put up or shut up. Show me proof that the death penalty is a deterrent. Come on, put up, and source it well because I will call you on your bullshit.

[brentspeak]

23. I said...

...that the death penalty in NJ might have been a deterrent for some criminals -- but I acknowledged that there's no way for anyone to prove that. Which means that there's no for you to to prove that the DP is "a useless tactic that does nothing". Further, I also pointed out that NJ hasn't executed anyone since 1963. So who are all these innocent people that the state of NJ has been killing?

[Beetwasher]

43. Are You Saying The Death Penalty Is Not Responsible For

The deaths of innocnet people? It doesn't matter if NJ has used it or not. If one innocent person in this country has died because of the death penalty, that's enough to get rid of it EVERYWHERE. Apparently morality is not your strong suit. So, if NJ doesn't USE the death penalty, why keep it? If NJ never uses it, then HOW could it be a deterrent?

"...that the death penalty in NJ might have been a deterrent for some criminals"

You'd still be wrong. There's no evidence to support that. And if it's never used, it's not deterrent anyway and it's useless and pointless.

[ronnykmarshall]

18. Wow!

I'm glad NJ listens to it's saner citizens.

So because someone doesn't share YOUR view on the DP .... they are mental?

That's pretty fucked.

[Beetwasher]

20. Umm, Learn English

"Saner"= MORE sane, not necessarily mental.

And yeah, IMO people against the death penalty are more sane than those who thirst for blood. Yup. If you got a problem w/ that, too bad.

[ronnykmarshall]

22. ....

self delete

My cats are easier to reason with.

[Beetwasher]

41. LOL!

Yeah, they probably understand English better than you. I must have missed the part of your post where you tried to reason.

[Sock Puppet]

28. dude - you might be careful where you're throwing stones

being in a glass house and all.

you gotta watch that apostrophe usage.

[Beetwasher]

42. How Droll

Apostrophe flames. :eyes:

What next? Call me a poopy head an be done w/ it.

There's a difference between an idiotic apostraphe flame, and somoene who purposely misrepresents what you said by NOT understanding the English language properly. As in saner=MORE sane, not mental.

[Sock Puppet]

44. aw, i was just being a jerk

I agree with your perspective on capital punishment. Thanks for speaking up.

[Beetwasher]

45. LOL!

No problem, I was just being an asshole.

[Parche]

9. True

I am with you, DP for people who murder, they took a life, and they should not have theirs
spared.......its not eye for an eye, it is justice......:hi:

[Whisp]

21. state executions are not social justice.

it's murder by institution and am glad to hear that NJ has changed their law.

[Parche]

24. murder

so if the murderer escapes from prison and murders again....................

[malaise]

10. How come countries with no death penalty have the

least murders?

[brentspeak]

11. Do the following "no death penalty" nations have few murders?

Colombia
Mexico
Haiti
Venezuela
Turkey
South Africa
Serbia
Philipines
Brazil

[malaise]

14. Post all of them

not a select few

[Mike03]

12. Don't confuse them with the facts

I think every high school student should have a semester course on the criminal justice system and forenisc pyschiatry 101, maybe read some textbooks on sociopathy and profiling to understand how violence in humans is born, incubated, encouraged and ripens.

You can lock them away forever for all I care, but killing them just lowers us to the level of the most primitive, unindustrialized nations on the face of the earth. We can do better.

[Prophet 451]

39. VERY broad generalisation

and probably meaningless. The differences in culture, economics, etc, etc make it pointless to compare them on those grounds.

[Mojambo]

3. Movement in the right direction. Excellent. n/t

[zanne]

5. Are we finally coming out of our caves?

I hope so! Good work, New Jersey!:toast:

[DemGa]

8. My home state; evolution in progress!...nt

[Disturbed]

27. The Death Penalty is revenge.

"It's useless as a deterrent AND it's responsible for the deaths of innocent people."

I agree.

[Sanctified]

25. No government should ever have the right to take the life of one of it's citizens.

However the same Government needs to protect the lives of those citizens that are incarcerated, anyone convicted of a violent heinous crime should be held in complete isolation from other guards and prisoners to prevent them from harming others in the prison system.

[smokey nj]

26. I'm thrilled about this.

Today, I'm very proud to be a resident of the great state of New Jersey!

[MnFats]

29. are any of you concerned about the 'humane' lethal injection as a DP method?

the lethal cocktail is being challenged in several states....it IS NOT known what agony the condemned faces because of the paralytic effect of the first batch of chemicals....the guy cannot move and ... if he could...would he be screaming in agony?

ok, go ahead, you can contend that the condemned caused agony and thus DESERVE to suffer.
not in my book. i don't believe in torture, whether in iraq or on a gurney in some whitewashed death chamber.
capitol punishment is state-sponsored murder.

I am SO glad my state does not have it and never will.

there is a federal case coming up and it makes me sick....

[Hippo_Tron]

31. Very concerned, I'm against the death penalty, but...

If we're going to have it, put them down on their knees and shoot them in the head. Lets stop pretending that it's "humane" because we use lethal injection.

[Prophet 451]

38. Of course

I disagree about "state-sanctioned murder", (the definition of murder is an unlawful killing during time of peace. If it is legal, it is not murder. Same thing applies to abortion). I support the DP under certain circumstances but I'll never support torture. If the DP must be used (as I believe it must on occasion) then it must be used in the quickest, most painless method possible.

[flashl]

30. Great news.

[MonkeyFunk]

32. Is there a link?

Does the senate have the power to ban the death penalty? Or did the senate VOTE to ban the death penalty?

[malaise]

33. Here

http://thegate.nationaljournal.com/2007/12/garden_state_close_to_death_pe.php

http://www.guardian.co.uk/worldlatest/story/0,,-7141822,00.html

[MonkeyFunk]

34. ah, OK

they voted to ban it. I was confused by the title of the thread.

[ulysses]

35. GOOD.

May more legislatures follow.

[YankeyMCC]

36. Kudos to the state of NJ and goods news for the people of NJ nt

[Prophet 451]

37. Activist judges! Biased courts! Legislating from the bench!

I don't really need the sarcasm tag here, right?

I'm actually a supporter of the DP in theory and under very limited circumstances but the justice system is so messed up these days that I can't really find any reason to complain about banning it either.

One question: Anyone got a link to the ruling? I'd be interested to hear the court's reasoning.

EDIT: Yes, it was the Senate, not the State Supreme Court. Yes, I misread the OP. Yes, I am a dunce and need my eyes tested.

[magellan]

40. Hoorah for my home state!

That was the right decision.