[Havoc]

If the law is followed to the letter, none of you deserve freedom to be sure. If the intent of the law is to rehabilitate, then it would seem it has done so to some extent here. Is law for vengeance? Is it for punishment? Is it rehabilitative? Or is it just there for us to follow just because. I don't know all the facts; but, the knee jerk reactions tend to demand discussion. Nobody seems to be arguing that the law be broken or excepted. The man has been tried by the law and has been convicted. Now it's not a matter of who or what the person was; but, who you are and what you've since made of that person. If the law has created a person worthy of being on our streets, where is the justice and sense in killing what you intended. Just an obvious question. When the law becomes counter-intuitive in its means, it's ends are then questionable - or rather the ends of those bastardizing it.

[goldstategop]

Law is for deterrence and punishment. It seeks to keep people from breaking it in the first place by letting them know exactly what they can and can't do. And when they do break, it they lose their freedom. We always used to be clear about our relationship to law. But liberals decided the law was too harsh, so they decided to be easier on people who broke the law. Not too surprisingly, instead of changing like the liberals thought, they played society for suckers. And when those released from prison on account of liberal benevolence broke the law again, liberals didn't accept their policy didn't work; instead, they blamed society for making the criminals wreak havoc on it again. That's why liberal penology has been discredited.

(Denny Crane: "I Don't Want To Socialize With A Pinko Liberal Democrat Commie.Say What You Like About Republicans. We Stick To Our Convictions. Even When We Know We're Dead Wrong.")

[GregoTX]

"If the law has created a person worthy of being on our streets, where is the justice and sense in killing what you intended."

The sense is that he murdered people and was sentenced to death for it! Who cares what kind of person he may or not be today? That has nothing to do with it. If every convicted murderer claims a "jailhouse conversion", should we change the sentence? I am always amazed on how many allies the criminals get defending them, and no one stands for the victims anymore. I certainly disagree with you sir.