What's wrong with this chart?

It was during the penalty phase of the trial. The grandmother told us about how this boy was treated as a young boy by his stepmother. She burnt his penis.

Her brother who was a witness for the prosecution told us about how his brother kept looking out the front window to see if anybody was coming to the house - like the police - the next day after he raped and murdered the girl. That was one of the many circumstantial evidence presented at the trial.

It is my personal opinion that any individual that serves on such cases be excused from jury duty for the rest of our lives. It's a huge responsibility that must be shared by the community as a whole. That's my personal opinion.

I have stated dozens of times that I have no sympathy for the worst offenders. However, the law must extend to everyone, if it is to cover even one. There is just too much uncertainty, and DNA is only the tip of an iceburg in botched convictions. There will never be a foolproof system, which is why I am 100% against executions. Life without parole effectively takes the convicted out of society. What more could anybody want?

I'll have to agree with you on that one, cicerone.

Gus,

I do not have a wood carved statue in front of my house. And, if you drove through Hodge, I am sure it was a very short trip. It's one of those towns that if you blink, you missed it.

Let me add this one more comment. I served on the civil grand jury of Santa Clara County for the 2003-2004 term. This was a voluntary service to give back to the community. I am proud to say that our grand jury wrote the most reports of any grand jury in this county, and I was able to work with some very good people that included a retired mayor, a police chief, some engineers, a business consultant (a genius), and others of great abilities - 19 in all. It was a challange, but also fun. We had our heated arguments and disagreements, but after all is said and done, we have given to our commuinity a valuable service. Most of the department managers and people we wrote about are gone from government service, because of our negative report. We have also commended some departments for their excellent performance. It was a very satisfying year.

good job, cicerone.

Momma Angel, thanks for the reply. I thought for sure that was your house.

Thank you, gus.

Gus,

You would be more apt to find a community of cats in front of my house! LOL

The quotes within quotes within quotes is pretty daunting to navigate, but so be it.
Cicerone, I have been called a couple of times to serve on a jury, but never got selected. And the cases were not as severe as the one you described being on. What an awesome responsibility; deciding the life or death of somone; deciding it through a consensus amongst a bunch of folks you don't know; have never met before.

Johnboy is a card-carrying liberal; one of the most liberal members of A2K. He makes no apologies about that. So when it comes to the "death penalty" he is against it. He recognizes that others may feel differently.

My question is this: If you committed a heinous crime and admitted to it and you were deemed sane, and were 22 years old, would you choose (if given the choice) death by execution by the age of 24 or death by old age at 80 after a life in prison?

This is not the question that yall were expecting. It has no bearing on whether the "death penalty" is right or wrong. I am simply curious as to what you consider to be the worse punishment.

rjb, I'm not in a position to decide for anyone whether the death penalty or life in prison is the worst. I've heard of some criminals that have requested they be put to death.

Personally, I don't think I can survive in prison. Claustrophobia has been a problem for me since I was young.

I love this wide open world.

I have a feeling the claustrophobia would be one of the lesser concerns if incarcerated.

You're prolly right! At 70 years of age, it won't be long, anywhos.

Hard to tell...Aunt Emily lived past 100...

It may not be applied evenly, because as you indicated we don't live in that perfect world. Of course if we lived in a perfect world we wouldn't need a death penalty.

Sturgis, You must have good genes too! I'm not so sure I'd wanna live to be 100; my body and mental facilities won't last that long.

I bet that's a reassuring thought to an innocent person.