Lawyer will fight for Dzhokhar Tsarnaev' life

[JJChambers]

12. I think you're stretching

You're underestimating the availability of concrete physical evidence. I agree that the DP should be rare, as I think it should require a higher standard than mere conviction, so I am not troubled by the thought that it would be rare. I also think you're dismissing the sheer amount of evidence available today that hasn't been in the past -- when eyewitness identification too often lead to innocents being convicted.

Here is a realistic and, sadly, a common scenario to consider:

A woman's body is found bound and naked. She has been raped and then shot - executed. Video is discovered in the area of her body that shows a man dumping the body; the vehicle is clear enough to be identified as belonging to a person with a history of violent sex crimes. The suspect DNA is located under the victim's fingernails and, in addition, a hair from the suspect is found in the tape used to bind the victim. Further investigation reveals that the suspect's cellular phone plotted at the scene. And finally, a firearm is located in the suspect's possessions when he is apprehended and ballistic analysis shows it is a match to the murder weapon.

Is that degree of physical evidence available in every murder case? No, it isn't, which is why the death penalty should be limited and the standard raised. But cases with that much evidence (and more) are probably more common than you think. In such cases execution should swiftly follow conviction and sentencing.