Lost innocence
To the editor:
The lethal injection, the electric chair and the gas chamber are all forms of how a prisoner condemned to the death sentence will die. At one point in history, the death penalty was considered a cruel and inhumane punishment. Times have changed. It’s common knowledge that the U.S. justice system has condemned many innocent citizens who now spend their free time in prison. They have a chance to have their case be reopened and another trial proving their innocence, but for those waiting on death row, salvation may come too late. Today the government widely accepts legal homicide: guilty or not.
The American government has been committed to ensuring the fairness of our court systems meaning that if there isn’t enough evidence to prove the suspect not guilty, their new home consists of three cement walls and a barred door. Some will then be shipped to death row. Lawyers have a famous saying, “It’s not what you know but what you can prove in court.” This fact has shattered the lives of millions locked up for a crime they didn’t commit. Every day, due to the death penalty, another opportunity to restore justice will be lost. The number of innocent people sitting in jail is known. The number of innocent people killed via the death penalty never will be.
An additional trial could be issued along with the death penalty. Between the initial sentence and the second trial, all the evidence can be rechecked and new information found to make certain the convict is a criminal. Instead of automatic liquidation, another trial would lower the percentage of unethical executions. Therefore the voice of the millions of families torn apart from a grave mistake can be heard.
Myah LaPread
Cape Cora