Man avoids death penalty because jury wasn't black enough

Do you have any subjective experience with prison? The men I've known who have done time, without exception, describe it as a horrible experience. I thank god my experience is all second-hand (visiting prisoners, interviewing current and former prisoners, and talking about it with friends and family who have had to go in) and pray that nothing in my life ever takes me there.

 

There are studies indicating that it gets easier as time moves along. I'm not using this to rationalize poor prison conditions. They are an American tragedy, and people could have used the same logic to rationalize slavery or concentration camps.

I am bringing it up for one reason: To combat the abolitionist argument that life in prison is somehow "worse" than the death penalty. It's not.

 

Seriously, good christ.

 

Do we mean 'small tremor' here; or 'another arrow in the quiver'?

 

But juries aren't chosen at random.

And having an unrepresentative jury in 86.5% of capital sentencing cases if they were seems reason enough to reconsider how we do things.

 

I got summoned for jury duty. I hope my group is representative. I mean, it's a one-day trial, so it's probably murder or espionage.

 

Also, before everyone flips a lid about "the blacks" getting out of jail by playing "the race card," it should be noted that it is nearly impossible to prove racial discrimination where selective prosecution is concerned. You have to prove both effect and intent. Effect is easy enough. Intent is almost impossible, short of a prosecutor saying, "I particularly target 'the blacks.'"

I'm stunned I have to say it, but here goes: "The blacks" do not get a free ride in the United States.

 

C'mon, man. Nobody in this country has it easier than a black man on death row. Nobody.

 

Is that a Tupac reference?

 

Basically the entire mindset of rightwing america is hysterical screeching fear/anger over the idea the neegroes (or similar strange-colored persons) are getting away with a free ride in some regard.

Almost all of their pet flogging-horses trace back in some way to the fear some shifty dark-skinned schmuck is getting away with something.

Unfortunately their plans to rectify these situations usually involve taking everything away from most of the rest of us too.

BTW, my view on the death penalty is generally not that black perps are executed far too often, but that white perps are not executed nearly often enough.

 

Peremptory challenges.

Peremptory.

 

Because no one ever makes an easy transposition of two letters by mistake when responding quickly on a message board. Sheesh.