effin death row inmates. - PeachParts Mercedes-Benz Forum

Meta6981 · #1 01-15-2006, 01:06 PM

"Governor denies clemency to killer, 75, set to die Tuesday By Howard Mintz ,Mercury News Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger on Friday turned down death row inmate Clarence Ray Allen's bid for clemency, increasing the likelihood the condemned killer will next week become the oldest inmate executed in California history.
In refusing to grant a reprieve, Schwarzenegger rejected Allen's argument that he is too old and ailing to be executed. Barring late intervention from the courts, the 75-year-old Allen will be put to death by injection at 12:01 a.m. Tuesday, more than 23 years after he was sentenced to death for orchestrating the shotgun slayings of three people in a Fresno market.
He will turn 76 the day before his execution.
``The depravity of Allen's crimes has not diminished with the years,'' the governor wrote. ``The passage of time does not excuse Allen from the jury's punishment.''
Despite losing the quest for clemency, Allen's attorneys are continuing to press the courts with their argument -- that the execution is unconstitutional because it would be cruel and unusual punishment in view of Allen's age and illness. Allen's legal team has asked the U.S. Supreme Court to intervene, as well as the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, which previously rejected Allen's legal challenges to his 1983 conviction and death sentence.
Allen had a major heart attack last fall, uses a wheelchair, has diabetes and is legally blind. His attorneys also argue that San Quentin Prison's inadequate medical care, the subject of an ongoing class-action lawsuit, has contributed to the deterioration of his condition, another reason they cite for keeping prison officials from executing him.
The California Supreme Court, without comment, earlier this week refused to block Allen's execution based on those factors. A Sacramento federal judge also ruled against Allen. The U.S. Supreme Court has not previously stopped an execution based on the argument that an inmate is too old and sick.
``The governor has chosen not to give any consideration to the devastating impact these unacceptable conditions have had on Mr. Allen, or to the reality of wheeling this elderly and infirm man who cannot walk or see into the death chamber,'' said Annette Carnegie, one of Allen's attorneys.
If the execution goes forward, Allen would be the 13th man to die in San Quentin's death chamber since the state restored capital punishment in 1978. He received the death penalty for ordering three murders in 1980, while he was serving time in Folsom Prison on a previous murder conviction.
Allen recruited Billy Ray Hamilton, a parolee, to kill witnesses who had helped put him behind bars for the murder of Mary Sue Kitts, 17. Hamilton gunned down one of those witnesses, Bryon Schletewitz, 27, at Fran's Market in Fresno, as well as two bystanders at the store, Douglas White, 18, and Josephine Rocha, 17. Hamilton is also on death row for the murders.
Allen was 50 at the time of the crimes. His attorneys and death-penalty opponents have argued that he's now a harmless, feeble old man, and that executing him would serve no purpose. Former San Quentin warden Daniel Vasquez and former California Supreme Court Justice Joseph Grodin, who voted to affirm Allen's death sentence in 1986, urged the governor to grant clemency.
``To execute Mr. Allen now, under these conditions, for a crime which he committed more than a quarter-century ago, would itself violate societal standards of decency,'' Grodin wrote in a recent letter to Schwarzenegger.
But Schwarzenegger concluded that the fact that it has taken two decades for Allen to pursue every chance of appeal does not mean he deserves a break now.
``Allen should not escape the jury's punishment because our system works deliberately and carefully,'' the governor wrote. ``Allen's death sentence will be carried out at the age of 76, in part, because he committed these crimes when he was 50. His conduct did not result from youth or inexperience, but instead resulted from the hardened and calculating decisions of a mature man.''
Schwarzenegger has rejected all four clemency petitions he has considered from death row inmates.
The families of Allen's victims have been urging his execution, expressing outrage at the argument that his age should be a consideration.
``If we want to talk about age, let's look at the victims and their age,'' Robert Rocha, Josephine Rocha's brother, said earlier this week. ``As he feels he's too old to die, we put it right back and say Josephine was too young to die.''

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This gets me going that this guy is trying to not get exicuted because he is too old. First off why has it taken the state 23 YEARS to finally get this guy into the damn chamber. This man condemed to death has been supported with food, clothing, medical, etc etc for so long. YOu know how much its costs me to go to the doctor, to get medicine and all the tests i need to remain healthy. They get it for free. FREE!!!!. He is getting diabetes medicine, my father a vietnam vet has to pay for his meds, why can't he at least work it off, or be productive towards something.

Prisioners complain they they are being mistreated and abused while THEY ARE IN JAIL/PRISION!!!!!!!. Its not supposed to be nice, its not supposed to be fun or easy. You are there for punishment. Plain and simple. It is supposed to deter people from breaking the laws. But NO its too fracking easy, too soft.

Comments?

koop · #2 01-15-2006, 01:14 PM

I think you and your father should go to prison.

Meta6981 · #3 01-15-2006, 01:28 PM

I am inclined to say no.

Botnst · #4 01-15-2006, 01:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by koop

I think you and your father should go to prison.

Why do you hate his father?

koop · #5 01-15-2006, 01:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Meta6981

I am inclined to say no.

Are you sure? They've got it pretty good. Free shelter, free clothing, freefood, and free meds. C'mon, think of how much a year your father will save on diabetes meds alone.

Meta6981 · #6 01-15-2006, 01:54 PM

I prefer to work for my keep, as does my father. I enjoy my ability to drive my vehicle and to see my freinds, as well as my own esteem as saying i have never gone to jail. Jail while it is punishment there is still too much that inmates get for free. While the current jail is enough to deter me it is not deterent enough for some criminals.

Brian Carlton · #7 01-15-2006, 02:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Meta6981

First off why has it taken the state 23 YEARS to finally get this guy into the damn chamber. This man condemed to death has been supported with food, clothing, medical, etc etc for so long. YOu know how much its costs me to go to the doctor, to get medicine and all the tests i need to remain healthy. They get it for free. FREE!!!!.

The 23 year time for appeals is not uncommon in states such as California. In most states, AFAIK, it usually takes 10 years or more.

My beef with the entire deal is the cost of all the legal proceedings over the course of this 10-23 year period. It's not uncommon to spend significantly more than $1M dollars in costs in a valiant attempt to prevent the execution of this douchebag. I'd much prefer life without parole. Nobody would bother to spend a dime in appeals..........provided the death penalty is off the table.

Does he deserve to die...........damn right...........but...........I'd rather save the $1M and allow him to die via natural causes...........it wouldn't have been much longer anyway.

Nothing is going to change with regard to the time and the costs of the appeals for a death row inmate. Might as well recognize this and just let them rot in jail. Society is served no purpose by executing them............it just faces an extraordinary expense.

Meta6981 · #8 01-15-2006, 02:13 PM

Well on most of that I agree. But some bastards deserve to get it in the vein. Only it is pointless if it takes 20 years for them to actually get it. It sort of takes the luster out of it. Does any one know how many appeals they can have?

koop · #9 01-15-2006, 02:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Meta6981

Only it is pointless if it takes 20 years for them to actually get it. It sort of takes the luster out of it.

Execution just isn't as sexy as it used to be.

Brian Carlton · #10 01-15-2006, 02:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Meta6981

Well on most of that I agree. But some bastards deserve to get it in the vein. Only it is pointless if it takes 20 years for them to actually get it. It sort of takes the luster out of it. Does any one know how many appeals they can have?

Sure they do........but.........what did you accomplish for society?

You sure did spend a bunch of money, however.

Now, if you could shorten the time to one year and limit the cost to $100K or so............I'm all for it..........but there are risks involved with such an approach..........the risk of killing an innocent man.

No, actually, I'd very much perfer life in solitary with no parole. Let the SOB go stir crazy.

Azimyth · #11 01-15-2006, 03:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Brian Carlton

Sure they do........but.........what did you accomplish for society?

You sure did spend a bunch of money, however.

Now, if you could shorten the time to one year and limit the cost to $100K or so............I'm all for it..........but there are risks involved with such an approach..........the risk of killing an innocent man.

No, actually, I'd very much perfer life in solitary with no parole. Let the SOB go stir crazy.

I prefer hard labor. You may have had your tounge firmly lodged in your cheek with the 'stir crazy' remark, but wouldn't that be cruel/unusual punishment?

Here's where my mind goes, if the accused is found guilty of murder, then perhaps the sentence could be life in hard labor and the proceeds go to repay the state for prosecution/support while the remainder goes to victim's familia etc.

Brian Carlton · #12 01-15-2006, 03:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Azimyth

I prefer hard labor. You may have had your tounge firmly lodged in your cheek with the 'stir crazy' remark, but wouldn't that be cruel/unusual punishment?

Here's where my mind goes, if the accused is found guilty of murder, then perhaps the sentence could be life in hard labor and the proceeds go to repay the state for prosecution/support while the remainder goes to victim's familia etc.

The only danger with "hard labor" is that the prisoner is intermingling with other prisoners and a serious possibility for injury other inmates or a prison guard certainly exists.

Such people have nothing to lose. It's a bit dangerous to properly supervise such individuals at hard labor. And, what hard labor could they do, inside a prison, that would be productive?? I certainly don't see the benefits of breaking rocks for the rest of eternity.

Hatterasguy · #13 01-15-2006, 03:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Brian Carlton

Such people have nothing to lose. It's a bit dangerous to properly supervise such individuals at hard labor. And, what hard labor could they do, inside a prison, that would be productive?? I certainly don't see the benefits of breaking rocks for the rest of eternity.

No it isn't. Build the prisons in Alaska so even if they manage to escape the wilderness will get them.

What you do to keep them in line is keep the guards out of the yard. Put them up on towers with machine guns and high powered rifles. Then you make a 30ft kill zone around the inner wall. Step inside the kill zone and bang one more cell just opened up.

Trash like this shouldn't be killed it costs society to much and is to easy for them. They should be cracking rocks in Alaska until the day they die, without any contact with the outside world. No letters to or from anyone, no TV, no internet, no radio. Maybe if they are good give them a newspaper once a month or so. Everyday they should think about their crime wish they didn't do it.

Meta6981 · #14 01-15-2006, 03:57 PM

I like the idea of "laboring" them. Certainly there must be something that the prisioners could do inside or around the prision that would help them pay back some of what the government i.e. our taxes puts into them. Also I am not saying that everyone that is in prison is not deserveing of a second chance or need to be punished to the severe limits. But there are many who get off too easy. Another alcatraz should be instated for those who are on the severe end.