So we kill someone to show that killing someone is wrong

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48. no amount of due process justifies the cold-blooded, premeditated, and unnecessary killing of humans

others have pointed out that due process isn't perfect, but even if it were, at best it makes sure that the prisoner is actually guilty and that the execution wasn't done in haste. i.e., it was a carefully thought out, planned, deliberate killing of another human being.

i'm not a pacifist, i'm not going to object to killing in legitimate self-defence, war circumstances, etc.

but the killing of a prisoner, when life imprisonment without parole is a perfectly legitimate alternative, is simply outright murder. the focusing on due process and the guilt of the prisoner is beside the point. no matter what the crime, not matter how certain we are that he did it, no matter how little remorse the prisoner felt, he's still a human being and it's murder to kill him in cold blood.