Body Count
In a flash, Arnold Schwarzenegger has pissed away any chances the he might have had at being re-elected. here’s hoping this tough-on-crime posturing bites him in the ass :
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger on Monday refused to spare the life of Stanley Tookie Williams, the founder of the murderous Crips gang who awaited execution after midnight in a case that stirred debate over capital punishment and the possibility of redemption on death row.Schwarzenegger was unswayed by pleas from Hollywood stars and petitions from more than 50,000 people who said that Williams had made amends during more than two decades in prison by writing a memoir and children’s books about the dangers of gangs.
“After studying the evidence, searching the history, listening to the arguments and wrestling with the profound consequences, I could find no justification for granting clemency,” Schwarzenegger said, less than 12 hours before the execution. “The facts do not justify overturning the jury’s verdict or the decisions of the courts in this case.”
Schwarzenegger could have commuted the death sentence to life in prison without parole.
He could have, but he didn’t. Sorry Tookie, your poll numbers weren’t quite high enough for Arnold to do the right thing.
And whether or not you agree with the death penalty, granting clemency was clearly the right thing to do in this case. Granted, there are raw emotions and hyperbole on both sides of the Tookie Williams case, there’s no reason to believe that society will be better off once Williams has been killed. In fact, the loss of his anti-gang activism alone will be a big loss to the communities that he has served. If there was ever a case of someone having a change of heart in prison, this is it.
Perhaps it’s time to take a step back and re-ask a basic question. What’s the point of incarcerating people for their crimes? I’ve always been under the naive illusion that it was to (a) remove criminals from our society, (b) act as a deterrent to prevent people from committing crimes, and (c) rehabilitate criminals in order to make them more productive members of society upon their release. A quick glance at recidivism rates makes points (b) and (c) pretty goddamned laughable, which is why cowardly politicians like Schwarzenegger have always proscribed a healthy dose of (a).
But in the case of Tookie Williams, it’s not enough to simply remove the man from society forever. Yes, it would improve society by permanently removing a criminal off the streets and punish Williams by permanently stripping him of his freedom, but that’s not enough to feed the state’s apparent blood lust. It boggles the mind that there are people who don’t think life in prison without the possibility of parole is an inadequate punishment, but you can see that subtle cruelty again and again the the vengeance-soaked pleas for “closure”. I don’t mean for this to come off as an anti-death penalty rant, but I really am grasping for a practical reason why somebody who’s been in prison for 25 years should be put to death. How does the death of Stanley Williams make our society better?
Perhaps somebody should ask the Governor that question.
10 comments
Copy link for RSS feed for comments on this post
Sorry, the comment form is closed at this time.
Schwarzenegger Denies Clemency for Williams
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger on Monday refused to spare the life of Stanley Tookie Williams, the found
Trackback by Unpartisan.com Political News and Blog Aggregator — December 12, 2005 @ 2:58 pm
Rest in pieces, Tookie. Don’t let the pearly gates hit you in the face when they slam shut before you.
Society will be better off when that violent dog is put down for my favorite reason – my tax dollars aren’t being pissed away keeping murderous filth like him alive.
Tookie didn’t redeem himself. He wrote kiddy books. That’s not redemption. Redemption would have been taking responsibility for his actions. Redemption would have been assisting law enforcement with information to bring down the Crips.
Arnie as the Governator is more often than not a comic mistake. I look at his decision not to commute Tookie’s sentence as one of his few correct decisions.
Comment by Jason — December 12, 2005 @ 6:17 pm
and compassionate conservatism…
well, there you are folks.
“like dogs”
Comment by mdhåtter — December 12, 2005 @ 6:39 pm
“..dog” rather….
Comment by mdhåtter — December 12, 2005 @ 6:42 pm
I think the cable news channels should do a “death watch” every time the death penalty is administered. Maybe then our society might experience lethal injection fatigue.
Comment by ceres — December 12, 2005 @ 6:57 pm
“If there was ever a case of someone having a change of heart in prison, this is it.”
Why do you say that? He hasn’t even acknowledged or apologized for the murders. I’m against the death penalty as well, but having a change of heart shouldn’t be a reason for clemancy. Especially since he hasn’t one.
Comment by tara — December 12, 2005 @ 9:05 pm
I recognize that on some level (or in some opinions) I might be a better or more civilized person if I opposed the death penalty—but I don’t. Much more on this here.
I have no problem whatsoever with the ultimate punishment for the ultimate crimes. And I mean the worst of the worst, where guilt is assured, release or rehabilitation is impossible, and mercy is unwarranted. Tookie sweeps the categories as far as I am concerned.
As a liberal, I can understand the stance of those who oppose the death penalty, yet it is frustrating to no end to see a rally of support for a thug like Tookie. Why is this guy the poster-boy for clemency/anti-DP efforts? I’m sure there are dozens of death row inmates who actually deserve support and second looks at their cases.
Cory Maye is the perfect example.
Comment by Mr Furious — December 13, 2005 @ 8:10 am
You should write an anti-death penalty rant.
No civilized nation puts prisoners to death, because it is neither a deterrent, nor is revenge something that government should deal in.
Comment by John E Thelin — December 13, 2005 @ 9:33 am
The penal system is about punishment and limiting their subsequent victims to fellow inmates. It costs more taxpayer dollars to kill someone than to incarcerate them for life. My dilemma is that while it is true many people deserve the death penalty, the judicial system is so corrupt a guilty verdict many times is not justice. For that reason alone capital punishment should be abolished. And while we’re at it let’s review the lengthy sentences for recreational pot smoking.
Comment by Becky — December 13, 2005 @ 12:50 pm
What happened to my earlier comment? [trying again]:
I recognize that on some level (or in some opinions) I might be a better or more civilized person if I opposed the death penalty—but I don’t. Much more on this here.
I have no problem whatsoever with the ultimate punishment for the ultimate crimes. And I mean the worst of the worst, where guilt is assured, release or rehabilitation is impossible, and mercy is unwarranted. Tookie sweeps the categories as far as I am concerned.
As a liberal, I can understand the stance of those who oppose the death penalty, yet it is frustrating to no end to see a rally of support for a thug like Tookie. Why is this guy the poster-boy for clemency/anti-DP efforts? I’m sure there are dozens of death row inmates who actually deserve support and second looks at their cases.
Cory Maye is the perfect example.
Comment by Mr Furious — December 13, 2005 @ 1:54 pm