'The Death Penalty, Nearing Its End'

New York Times editorial today, both calling for an end to the death penalty, and predicting its end is imminent.

Public support is now at less than 50 percent, according to a recent Pew poll. You can be sure that has caught the Court's eye.

I hope, first, to win my current client's case and get his sentenced changed or overturned completely. Alternatively, I hope I can keep the case going until, inevitably, the death penalty is barred in the United States.

http://www.nytimes.com/2016/10/24/o..._r=0&mtrref=www.nytimes.com&assetType=opinion

 

What's the Democratic Party nominee's position on ending the death penalty?

 

She believes it should be retained for very limited circumstances, I believe, namely terrorist attacks.

 

I used to support the death penalty when I was younger, but given the way it is applied disproportionately to black men and the possibility for an innocent person to be executed, I find my support has waned. It does not serve as a deterrent, thus its only function is to serve vengeance. I'd be OK with abolishing it.

 

President Trump will have televised executions every week!

 

Understood and agreed upon. As a younger man, that didn't concern me as much as it does now.

 

Vengeance is not the only function. It also prevents someone who murders from doing it again.

 

So does incarceration, for the most part.

 

Yes. if the person is never released from prison. although people have been killed in prison.

 

Right, of course. I'm thinking that anyone who would have been sentenced to death would instead be sentenced to life in prison without possibility of parole.

And, of course, that person could conceivably murder another inmate while in prison, though homicides in prison are exceedingly uncommon (there were 741 deaths of inmates by homicide in local and state prisons between 2000-2010, I assume the vast majority of which were committed by other inmates). It's a rate of about 3 homicides per 100,000 prisoners.