If you could choose the sentence for Dzhokhar Tsarnaev.....

[Nye Bevan]

39 votes, 1 pass | Time left: Unlimited
	Death
	9 (23%)
	Life without parole in Supermax
	9 (23%)
	Life without parole but not in Supermax
	15 (38%)
	Life with the possibility of parole
	4 (10%)
	Imprisonment with less than a life sentence
	2 (5%)
	1 DU member did not wish to select any of the options provided.
Show usernames Disclaimer: This is an Internet poll

[jberryhill]

1. Is he particularly violent or good at escape?

He looks like a typical gangly kid. What on earth is so dangerous about him that he needs some sort of extra effort to confine and control?

[Xipe Totec]

16. Well, he has a precedent of pretty serious violence. Gangly tho he may look. nt

[jberryhill]

17. Yeah, I don't think he'll be building many bombs in any prison

Is he physically violent and somehow difficult to restrain?

[mythology]

123. Would the other prisoners be a threat to him?

Either because he's a non-imposing young guy, or because he set off a bomb at a sporting event.

Keeping him out of gen pop might be for his safety more than the safety of others.

[Hell Hath No Fury]

2. I never understood the appeal of the death penalty --

from a punishment standpoint. I would much rather have Mr. Tsarnaev live a very long life in a very small cell. I can't think of a more severe punishment.

[Yupster]

129. Can you picture eight kids being held hostage in a school somewhere

Until Tsarnaev is released from prison and flown to Syria?

I can

I'd rather he gets the death penalty.

[hrmjustin]

3. life in prison but what jail he serves in the authorities can determine.

[Vogon_Glory]

4. Life without parole

Life without parole and no special treatment. Let the little punk take his chances like Jeffrey Dahmer.

[RKP5637]

84. Yep, that's what someone else mentioned to me today, let him live out his

days with fear. Jeffrey Dahmer, man, that was one scary guy, probably not someone you would expect to be who he really was.

[Man from Pickens]

5. I would choose

to have a fair trial and then decide what punishment, if any, is appropriate

[hack89]

126. He had his fair trial. Nt

[hifiguy]

6. Life without parole in regular prison.

It is conceivably possible he got talked/bullied into this by his older brother. But he should never see the light of freedom again.

[mike_c]

7. it seems to me that this young man can be rehabilitated....

If there is the possibility of rehabilitation, no one's life should be simply thrown away. The world benefits when someone understands the harm they did and puts that part of their life behind them. Killing them, or pre-judging apriori what the course of their future life will be without regard for how they might learn and change is simple revenge. I want criminal justice to be about much more than revenge. I want it to be about transformation and change. Tsarnaev is very young and was obviously impressionable, and is also intelligent. He might be a very different man in a few decades. We need to allow room for transformative change, IMO.

[F4lconF16]

13. Thank you.

Prison should not be about punishment. This is part of why we have such a huge problem in this country... Rehabilitation is what the best prison system in the world, in Sweden, is all about. There is no life sentence there, not even a thought of the death penalty. And it works, it really does--even for those who we might hate now, who we might think deserve it.

[JonLP24]

47. Interesting

Sweden as well as other Nordic countries routinely rank in the top 5 in the '"rule of law index" which ranks justice systems.

2014 Sweden 3rd best in the world
http://data.worldjusticeproject.org/#index/SWE

[Erich Bloodaxe BSN]

103. Thanks for that link.

I'm always on the lookout for sites that do good aggregation and analysis of policy statistics, and that looks like a decent site.

[Warren DeMontague]

98. "prison should not be about punishment"- sorry, but fuck that.

When someone giggles as they deliberately leave a nail-filled backpack next to a railing to blow up a 6 year old boy, blow the leg off an 8 year old girl, sorry, but as far as I'm concerned fuck YES prison "should be about punishment".

I notice that in the thread about the dickstick who ran the revenge porn website, blackmailing women and ruining their lives with their nude pictures, no one seemed terribly wrought out over the thought of "prison being about punishment". And you know what? They're right.

Some things deserve punishment. Not "rehabilitation". So go ahead, call me names, fulminate about what a horrible human being I am, put me on another DU "naughty" list like they're doing downthread with the people voting for the DP.... take me off the Dalai Lama's speed dial- I don't give a shit.

people have been bending themselves into fucking pretzels for days over what will happen to poor Dzhokhar Tsarnaev. As far as I've noticed not too many people have stopped to give more than a cursory 5 second thought to the families that unrepentant asshole destroyed.

[LisaL]

48. Rehabilitated?

Did he show any remorse whatsoever?

[HERVEPA]

51. Irrelevant. Has nothing to do with possibility of rehabiltaion in the future.

[Warren DeMontague]

96. Really? I think it might very well have EVERYTHING to do with it.

I mean, if someone "shows" remorse because they know that it may offer them a chance to walk out of prison, how likely is it that it is genuine remorse?

If the guy showed remorse despite knowing that it wouldn't make a damn sight worth of difference to his own life, it might indicate that he is capable of empathizing with the people he killed, the children whose legs he blew off with a backpack full of explosives and flesh-shredding metal shrapnel.

[TexasMommaWithAHat]

116. If he has yet to show remorse, I think it has everything to do with it

Besides, sociopaths can learn to "show" remorse.

If prison is to be about rehabilitation only and not punishment, the person showing the most remorse might be deemed rehabilitated within a year or two. Would that be an adequate sentence for killing and maiming dozens of people?

Of course, prison should be about punishment!

[Travis_0004]

54. Id rather not risk it

I would give him life if found guilty just to give some closure to the victims and families. Some people are beyond rehabilitation.

[justiceischeap]

111. Then we'd need to send him to another country because we don't do that here in America

we don't rehabilitate our prisoner's. We house them and feed them and that's it.

[closeupready]

8. I don't know. I do know it wouldn't be either of the first two options.

I don't believe in capital punishment nor in the cruel and inhumane conditions of Supermax. If the worst douchebags can be rehabilitated and then later speak out against the acts they committed (even though they continue living behind bars), then I believe we need to try to find a way to do that. That almost certainly means they can NOT be Supermaxed, as supermaxing prisoners induces mental illness.

[riderinthestorm]

9. He's said he wants to be a martyr. I would deny him that.

let him rot the rest of his life in jail.

[KamaAina]

10. Still on the fence on Supermax

but definitely life without parole. No DP. Not even for him.

[KamaAina]

68. Okay, I'm off the fence. No supermax.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/10026476760

[Aerows]

11. I'd just end it

He's a young man, and living in Supermax for life is worse than a death sentence. Just end him and be done with it.

That's a horrible thing to say, but keeping him alive does no one, including the victims and himself, any good.

[F4lconF16]

14. There's a painful truth to this.

Supermax is essentially torture, and if the option is between a life of mental and physical torture or a quick death...one seems more humane to me. Neither is right.

[csziggy]

124. The death penalty in this country is not quick

Often it takes decades to go through all the appeals and other processes that our system requires in order to claim that we are trying to not kill an innocent person. I no longer believe that any part of our penal system is just or functional but that doesn't mean we can let murderers run free.

I don't pretend I have any clue how to fix our sick society. I just hope it is possible that some day it can heal.

[zappaman]

19. This was a silly alert.

AUTOMATED MESSAGE: Results of your Jury Service

On Wed Apr 8, 2015, 03:16 PM an alert was sent on the following post:

I'd just end it
http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1002&pid=6475649

REASON FOR ALERT

This post is disruptive, hurtful, rude, insensitive, over-the-top, or otherwise inappropriate.

ALERTER'S COMMENTS

"Just end him and be done with it" Disgusting post and no better than the actions of the person on trial, I don't feel this post belongs on a Democratic discussion board.

You served on a randomly-selected Jury of DU members which reviewed this post. The review was completed at Wed Apr 8, 2015, 03:20 PM, and the Jury voted 1-6 to LEAVE IT.

Juror #1 voted to LEAVE IT ALONE
Explanation: No explanation given
Juror #2 voted to LEAVE IT ALONE
Explanation: It's an opinion and this is exactly where it belongs. This is a discussion board, meant for doing things like...discussing stuff.
Juror #3 voted to LEAVE IT ALONE
Explanation: No explanation given
Juror #4 voted to LEAVE IT ALONE
Explanation: Radical PC enforcement attempt by the alerter.
Juror #5 voted to LEAVE IT ALONE
Explanation: no reason for this alert
Juror #6 voted to LEAVE IT ALONE
Explanation: Hey alerter! Someone has a different opinion than you. Grow the fuck up.
Juror #7 voted to HIDE IT
Explanation: No explanation given

Thank you very much for participating in our Jury system, and we hope you will be able to participate again in the future.

[Mika]

20. Discussions at DU are being shut down for silly alerts like that.

This DU certainly isn't the DU of yesteryear.

[ChisolmTrailDem]

21. Not it is not. Not by a long shot. nt

[Agschmid]

26. Lol from the poster here since 2012, since that decidedly is when things were "good" on DU.

Change can be a good thing, don't be so fixed in your mindset.

[ChisolmTrailDem]

28. Ahem, I've been a DUer since 2005. Thanks for your comment, though. nt

[zappaman]

30. Cool! What was your name before?

[Agschmid]

31. Well not on this account.

[ChisolmTrailDem]

33. Nope, not on this account. Nick changed when allowed by admins in 2009 after shrub and last when I

lost access to the email account I signed up with and couldn't remember the password, as I've explained before.

So, I repeat, DU is nowhere near what it was in those days. I can say this because I was here and I know.

[Agschmid]

37. And I said change can be good.

Really the more things change the more they stay the same...

[Aerows]

23. I merely offered my opinion

It's hardly like I was calling for him to be hung in the public square.

DU is certainly not what it used to be.

[TeeYiYi]

82. You wanted...

...him hung in the public square... Admit it!

TYY (aka:Juror#2)

[Aerows]

93. TYY

Thank you.

[TeeYiYi]

94. yw ..nt

TYY

[Agschmid]

25. No they aren't...

Last edited Wed Apr 8, 2015, 05:40 PM - Edit history (1)

The jury voted to leave, so obviously discussions are NOT being shut down, what a silly idea.

[Aerows]

42. Do you have a problem

with my post?

I don't think it was as insensitive as blowing the legs off of people at the Boston Marathon.

I don't want vengeance, humane ways of dealing with the likes of Tsaernov in the past were quick deaths.

Excuse me for looking at a clearly guilty young man, and wanting to prevent his suffering for 40+ years in the penal institution.

[Agschmid]

44. Those weren't humane ways.

What an asinine assertion.

[Aerows]

59. Tell me what you consider humane, then

He aided and abetted the obliteration of 9 people, and destroyed the limbs of several others, altering their lives forever.

Tell me what you think is humane.

[Agschmid]

69. A trial by his peers and then jail.

[Aerows]

70. He is having a trial by his peers

and is currently jailed.

[Agschmid]

71. Well there you go then...

But yet you still want this "shitstain" dead...

[Aerows]

72. Choice of Words

I could either stand by them, or take them back. I'm not really eager to take back harsh words toward a criminal that blew the legs off innocent bystanders. If you are waiting for me to do so, keep waiting.

[Agschmid]

73. Not waiting for anything it's clear where you stand...

Im from Mass. and I sure as hell hope the people here have the character to stand up and not choose death, it's clear that character is lacking on DU.

[Warren DeMontague]

101. yes let's put "air quotes" around the "bad word" used about the "guy" who

"deliberately" stuck a "backpack" full of "explosives" and "metal shrapnel" next to a "family" that included an "eight year old boy" who is now "dead"

"shitstain" eyeroll eyeroll heavy sigh. Well, we know what the REAL problem is here, amirite????? It's "so-called progressives" who are insufficiently empathetic to the guy who giggled as he blew up kids.

Seriously, what the everloving FUCK.



Lock him up and throw away the key, OR give him the death penalty (I'm against the DP mostly because the justice system is imperfect and often gets the wrong person, particularly in cases of low income or minority defendants. In this case, he's clearly guilty, so honestly, I don't really give two shits) but he's certainly not worth the cloth-rending and hand-wringing over 'what will happen to this poor young man'?

And heaven forfend we should call him a "shitstain"!

There's your , thank you very much. You're right, we shouldn't call him a shitstain; it's an insult to shit, and stains.

FUCK HIM. He lost any and all chance at ever being a decent fucking human being when he deliberately blew up a family full of kids watching a race.

[cwydro]

45. I agree with you.

Wholeheartedly.

[Aerows]

61. I don't know what I'd do with the dude

other than just end his life quickly. You have several people with no limbs, several people that are dead, and others that are scarred for life.

Please explain how I should have sympathy for this shitstain other than a quick execution.

That is the KINDEST thing he is warranted.

[cwydro]

85. Yup.

I'm a runner too. Two of those injured were from my city.

This cretin killed children and blew people's legs off.

I'm not a DP proponent, but I don't care if he gets it.

We know he is guilty.

[Warren DeMontague]

100. some in this thread are deeply offended and disturbed that folks here are calling the shitstain

a shitstain.

I don't care. He's a fucking shitstain.

[Fearless]

50. The one of rampant homophobia and misogyny?

Or the one where trolls would hijack and derail OP's getting the entire thread locked?

[Aerows]

62. Where on earth

did this come from?

If there is a hijack and derail ... Uh.

[Aerows]

22. I guess offering an opinion

on an awful situation is taboo these days.

Thanks - it was just my shade on a decidedly cloudy issue.

[Warren DeMontague]

105. A good chunk of this place has gone off the rails, to a certain extent.

That alert sort of proves it.

[HERVEPA]

53. I hate the death penalty but yes, really dumb alert.

[RKP5637]

86. A ridiculous alert. Those that alert because they can't tolerate differing opinions. DU is

a discussion board, not a compliance board.

[840high]

91. Silly alert.

[Logical]

79. Nope, you must love the other countries who execute people. None I admire. nt

[Aerows]

80. Hello there

person that assumes all sorts of things about me from a single DU post!

[Logical]

83. It does tell a lot. DP is a terrible thing. Look at the list. Get back to me. nt

[treestar]

12. Vacillating between parole or not

Maybe I will rethink question after testimony in the penalty phase. He's young and his brother is gone. Parole might be thinkable about a few decades.

[madamesilverspurs]

15. Killing him gains us nothing.

He's young. Over the course of his long life sentence we might possibly learn more about what brought him to his actions. We might even be able to learn how to prevent similar actions.

[jberryhill]

18. Yeah, I felt that way about Tim McVeigh

We could have learned a lot from him about just what sort of thinking and events led him to do what he did.

[2naSalit]

88. He was interviewed at length

by Rachel Maddow shortly before he was executed. I hope he got it all out then.

http://www.nbcnews.com/id/36135258/ns/msnbc_tv/t/mcveigh-tapes-confessions-american-terrorist/

[jberryhill]

89. You don't get the perspective of time

By the time you understand shit you did in your twenties, you are well into your forties.

[2naSalit]

90. Actually...

being of advanced age I do.

What I was saying is that at least he had a length interview with a stellar reporter before his demise, at least he had that opportunity and I was also saying that I hope he had taken that opportunity to tell what he had learned in the fifteen years after the crime. Not that it was a very long time to reflect on his action all that much.

As for this current perp, I don't know what I think should happen to him. He should bear suffering of some sort for his deeds, I do know know to what extent and just exactly what would qualify s such for this individual. I do support you claim that time does have a way of changing one's perspective, it just isn't always available for all who commit heinous crimes.

[Blue_In_AK]

24. I oppose the death penalty in all cases.

[moondust]

27. Life in a solitary cell with

this picture indelibly painted on the walls:

[closeupready]

32. Wow.

What a powerful photo, considering the circumstances at issue. Damn.

[NightWatcher]

29. How long do you think he'd survive general population?

High profile convicts do better in supremax. Administrative Segregation (solitary) at other facilities often have too many opportunities for something to happen to him.

[Rex]

35. He is a dead man walking in. Wrong kind of infamy in this country.

Sure he might get some protection from the muslim gangs, but you know groups like the hells angels cannot wait to kill him. They will trade him off like a piece of meat, for some agreement. There is no honor among thieves, murderers, liars, con-men.

[Fearless]

49. " he might get some protection from the muslim gangs"

Wow.

[hifiguy]

60. There is every kind of gang under the sun in big prisons. nt

[geek tragedy]

34. He's not clever or smart or dangerous enough to be in supermax.

Gen pop at a regular prison ought to do.

[NCTraveler]

36. If I understand his actions and guilt correctly.

Life in prison. As healthy as possible. There is absolutely no need for punishment other than being removed from society.

[Kalidurga]

38. Supermax prisons are horrible

Not a fit place for humans to be. So, Supermax it is. I think the death penalty would be a service to him.

[Skittles]

39. I have not followed the trial, but did he express ANY sense or remorse?

[LisaL]

55. Not according to the prosecution.

"Why are prosecutors seeking the death penalty?



Many of the charges Tsarnaev was convicted of are capital crimes, and US Attorney General Eric Holder filed a Notice of Intent in January 2014 citing what are known as “aggravating” factors that call for the death penalty: They include Tsarnaev’s intentional killing and infliction of injuries, the grave risk of death to more than one person, the substantial planning and premeditation in the crimes, and the “heinous, cruel and depraved manner” of carrying out the crimes. The prosecutors also cited other factors that they are not required by law to prove: His encouragement of others to carry out similar crimes, the extent of the impact on the victims, and his lack of remorse."


http://www.bostonglobe.com/metro/2015/04/08/after-conviction-dzhokhar-tsarnaev-what-happens-next/RzTi2pg1gU1KZYvYjpCgdM/story.html?rss_id=Top-GNP

[Skittles]

56. OK

I have no doubts he was heavily influenced by his family, in particular this older brother, but enough time has passed for him to gain perspective.....very sad to see he is a lost cause.

[Jenoch]

40. I would choose life without parole in a federal prison.

I don't know if SuperMax is necessary. If the prison officials deem it necessary, then fine. He should not be sentenced to death. (I am opposed to the death penalty, especially if the perp wishes to die.)

[WillowTree]

41. So long as he never knows one moment of freedom again, I don't care what they do with him.

[Spider Jerusalem]

43. Life, no parole. Not Supermax.

Supermax prisons are, in practice, state-sanctioned torture. If I supported torturing Tsarnaev or anyone else for the remainder of their natural life I'd be just about as much of a monster as he is.

[NuclearDem]

52. That's my position too.

Supermax prisons are designed to confuse, disorient, and deprive, in 23 hour a day solitary confinement. Subjecting someone to that for more than a few months, much less their entire life, is torture.

[Aerows]

63. My position

is horrible, but if he preferred execution other than lockup solitary for life, he should be granted it.

[Spider Jerusalem]

64. Note that I said "not solitary"

and I don't support the death penalty. Especially not for someone who wants to be a martyr.

[Aerows]

66. And I'm not disagreeing with you

I think this is one of those situations where there is a wide set of opinions.

[Fearless]

46. Life with the possibility of parole

Unrepentant I believe he should face life in prison for the actions he's taken. If, at some point far down the road, he comes to terms with what he did and proves beyond a reasonable doubt that he's rehabilitated, then, like with everyone else, he should receive parole. The object of prison should be rehabilitation not vengeance; it is for the same reason I disagree with the death penalty.

[HereSince1628]

57. Public safety seems a legitimate social objective for prison

Once the person is no longer a risk to individuals or society, I am not sure there is a compelling reason to keep that person in jail.

Rehabilitation, would seem to be about psychological reprogramming of his acceptance that a heinous act against innocent civilians can be a religiously valid.

I have no idea if or how that can be done, and it would seem to discredit a person's religious beliefs which bumps into how that could be done to not violate religious rights.

[Fearless]

74. Killing people isn't a valid religious belief.

[HereSince1628]

76. yes, that's certainly the narrative from dominant culture

but the whole point of religious rights is to protect views that aren't those of the dominant culture.

I don't validate jihadism as I too come from our dominant culture which rejects jihadism.
And I can't say I understand Islam and it's connection to jihad as a muslim might.

ul-Qadri's often quoted fatwa on terror suggests terror and suicide bombing certainly have no place in Islam. But fatwas are not much more than pronouncements of an Islamic scholar, and so there is possibility for a lot of what might be said to be small-grained or fine grained religious justifications that influence a small number of people who follow the fatwa with tremendous justification.

In these situations it's possible for me to imagine the person producing a fatwa as combination Charles Manson and Martin Luther (the German monk). The Manson side of the personality seems criminal, the Luther side merely extreme and out of the mainstream of his own religion.

What does that mean for a follower of such a person?

[mythology]

125. His religious right to jihad doesn't extend to killing and maiming people with bombs

any more than Eric Rudolph's anti-choice religious views extended to being allowed to bomb abortion clinics or the Olympics.

No, he doesn't have a religious right that involves killing and injuring people. I don't care what culture you come from, in the modern world, we don't hold that individuals have the right to kill randomly because some interpretation of the religion, or ethnic heritage, says they can. I don't care if it's Christianity, Islam, Rastafarian, Pastafarian, atheist, anarchist, or whatever. It's silly to say that we don't understand that his culture might say that what he did was okay. There are millions of Muslims living in this country that don't blow up bombs. Do they not understand Muslim culture either?

[Terra Alta]

58. He wants the death penalty so he can be seen as a martyr

Let's not give him what he wants. Supermax for life. It's what he deserves.

[DinahMoeHum]

65. Life without parole. Period.

I don't care whether in Supermax or not.

[BainsBane]

67. I chose life without parole because I oppose the death penalty

but I won't shed any tears if he is executed.

[roamer65]

75. Life with parole possibility.

I really want to see the death penalty abolished. Too many on death row are now being found innocent with DNA testing.

You should always have the right on a life sentence to petition a parole board, but that does not mean automatically you will get it. However, some people do change and that does have to be taken into account.

[Hoyt]

77. I don't think we gain anything by applying death penalty. I'd let him earn little bit better prison

Not sure we ever gain anything from death penalty, although I understand how victims' family might feel.

[Logical]

78. I Like exposing the "progressives" who support the DP. Many names not a shock. nt

[ScreamingMeemie]

81. It's interesting as long as one does not crack open a notebook and record names...

...or bookmark a thread to link to for use 5 years from now in another argument.

[Agschmid]

87. Yup.

It's disgusting...

[Warren DeMontague]

99. he's makin a list, he's checkin it twice....

Yeah, I also didn't get all that upset when the Navy Seals killed "kindly little old man in his jammies" Osama Bin Laden, as some people were saying.

While not strictly pro-DP, I can understand the sentiment here. And frankly given the reality of what that guy did, it's pretty ridiculous that folks want to play witch hunt for anyone who is advocating what they deem an "excessive" level of punishment.

Add that to my permanent record, I'm in trouble!!!

[romanic]

118. Sounds like you got a lot of "free time".

[morningfog]

92. I am opposed to DP and mandatory Life without parole.

In all circumstances.

Had the bombings occurred 9 months earlier, death would not be an option. Nor would automatic life without parole.

[brooklynite]

109. Had the bombings occurred 9 months earlier, would he have been any less reprehensible?

Would the bombings have had any less impact?

[morningfog]

113. That's not the question.

My math was wrong too. If the bombings had been 1 year and 9 months earlier e wouldn't be death eligible.

If you read the cases in which the Supreme Court rules that minors can't be out to death or be sentenced to automatic life without parole, you will see that the reason is based in the science of brain development. The brain is not fully developed until around the age of 25.

It goes to the culpability, impulsivity, inability to make proper decisions, inability to stave off negative influence. The same reasons we don't kill a 15 year old should be considered for anyone under 25. Everyone's brain develops differently.

I do not believe anyone, ever, no matter how henious the crime, should be sentenced at one time to never be released. Everyone should have at least the possibility to be considered for parole. Even if they never get out, it incentivizes rehabilitation on a personal level.

[brooklynite]

117. Freedom then becomes an abstract concept...

...let's stipulate that he eventually learns the error of his ways and is released 40-50 years from now. Is someone going to hire a mass murderer? Rent him an apartment? Are they going to trust the Government official who says you should now trust him?

[morningfog]

121. Persons convicted of murder (even multiple murders) are released on parole

quite often.

Your questions are not relevant to whether the purposes of sentencing are served by life with no parole eligibility. Furthermore, true rehabilitation would include services, treatments and preparation for release. I know of many organizations who hire ONLY parolees, and mostly lifers. Your questions are simply irrelevant to question of the propriety of life without parole.

[Jamastiene]

95. I am always of two minds on this type of topic.

I was raised pro death penalty until I had the chance to talk to a few people on DU who were against the death penalty. It took having a very unpopular stance in a high profile case a few years ago and hearing what was being said on the other side for me to realize that I really don't believe in the death penalty. Far too many people are found innocent years later through newer technologies and science.

Another belief I was raised with involves torture. Being from a military family that is right wing fucks a kid up. As I got older, I began to realize I don't think I fit politically with my family at all. Now, I know I don't. I'm almost 45 years old and my family is still telling me to just settle down with a nice man...even though they know I was raped for being gay and everything else that has happened. That is how right wing and unmoving they are on anything they believe.

So, even though I was raised pro death penalty and pro torture, and there is, at least in the back of my mind, the conditioning for being pro blood-lust, deep down in my conscience, I know it is not right.

I sure would hate to end up in one of those supermax prisons. One thing they say is that it is 23 hours a day in isolation. While I, a hermit who would rather stay home than ever go anywhere or spend time with people most of the time, might find that idea heavenly.

BUT....

I have read that they abruptly stop their antidepressants and refuse to give them those medications. That could turn into hell really quickly. So, that would NOT be something I would want anyone with depression or any other psychiatric disorder to suffer.

So, there is a catch to the supermax prisons. For loners like me, on the surface it might have once looked ok, but knowing they make you suffer through depression without your meds, that sounds like my definition of torture. That, plus no animals anywhere to be found, would be my definition of hell. I wouldn't wish that on even the most heinous villain to ever walk the Earth. Hell, even Cheney or Kissinger or Bush (pick one) do not deserve that.

So, put him in prison for life with no torture and no death penalty, but also no book deals, movie deals, interviews for TV or the internet, or chances of starting a deranged fan club. It is supposed to be at least a little bit inconvenient for them, but within reason, and not out and out torture. Life in prison without the possibility of parole with credit for time served would be enough.

[Warren DeMontague]

97. “That’s Jane with two legs,” he said of his 6-year-old daughter.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/post-nation/wp/2015/03/05/man-who-lost-son-and-tended-to-his-other-wounded-kids-testifies-in-boston-bombing-trial/

“That’s Denise,” his wife. “And that’s Martin.” Everyone in the courtroom knew that Martin Richard was the 8-year-old boy who died in the bombing. Everyone expected his father’s story, which came at the end of the day Thursday, to be the most painful in two days of relentlessly painful testimony.

***

“What specific observation did you make about her leg?” asked the prosecutor.

“She didn’t have it.”

Richard found someone to help Jane, then walked Henry over to the curb on the other side of the street, and went back to check on his wife and younger son. “When I saw Martin’s condition, I knew he wasn’t going to make it. … I told Denise that I needed to go be with Jane and Henry. She agreed. She was crying. At that time, I saw my son alive, barely, for the last time.”

[Erich Bloodaxe BSN]

102. I don't believe in the death penalty or 'life' sentences, but I do believe in 'indefinite' sentences

There should always be at least the option of being released from prison, but whether or not that option is EVER used should depend upon the prisoner and whether or not they truly change. If they remain likely to continue to be a danger, then the option may never be used.

Same reason I oppose all mandatory sentencing, really. Life is not 'one size fits all', and what is true today may not be true 50 years from now.

[Paper Roses]

104. Life without parole. Death penalty will give him about 15 years of appeals.

The DP would cost a fortune in legal fees and lost time for other issues facing the courts.
Lock him up without benefit of parole. Solitary would be fine.

Maybe if he is locked up forever, the families of those dead and injured can try and get his image out of their minds.
The death penalty keeps his name out there for all to relive.

[morningfog]

106. Death penalty certainly makes for a more costly appeal.

However, the DOJ, in its bloodlust, refused to enter a plea deal. They could have accepted his guilty plea and sentences him to life without parole. They could have avoided the trial.

But now they have ensured there will be many years of appeals, from the trial and possibly from a death sentence.

[bigwillq]

107. Life in Supermax (nt)

[DrDan]

108. time like this I appreciate the "show usernames" option

[Marengo]

122. Agreed! Now we can clearly identify torture advocates...

And those who support state-sanctioned murder.

[Erich Bloodaxe BSN]

127. Most folks don't hide their feelings.

The same people who vote are also commenting to make sure everyone knows where they stand.

[Marengo]

128. I'm rather surprised by some who are advocating the DP or life in the supermax...

I was under the impression that conditions within "super max" facilities were condemned as inhumane by progressives and for the most part by people on the left of the political spectrum. Not to mention the DP.

[LynnTTT]

112. Not Supermax

There's no reason for Supermax. It's not a leader, not someone who is an escape threat. Lock him up and forget him.

[LibertyLover]

114. I don't want him to become

a martyr.

[Orsino]

115. Cake.

I oppose the death penalty, but any incarceration he is likely to face will amount to torture, which is no better.

Our justice system is generally not capable of dealing humanely even with minor offenses. We're only going to fuck this guy up worse than he already is fucked up.

[romanic]

119. Death or Supermax

This kid (I refuse to call him a man) deserves both for the vicious and horrific injuries and deaths he and his loser of a brother caused that day. I don't feel sorry for him and I don't wish for him to be treated humanely because he didn't offer any humane treatment to the kids he blew up and the countless limbs he blew off at the finish line. If that makes me less of a liberal or a Democratic to some people then boo fucking hoo, I don't give a crap.

[rollin74]

120. Life without parole in supermax

Death penalty would make him a martyr and probably what he wants

[Shrek]

130. Any of the first three options suit me

As long as he never again sees the sun or sky.