Issue Position: The Death Penalty

Issue Position

While recognizing that the vast majority of people sentenced to death by the courts in this state deserve such a fate, the number of cases of people wrongfully imprisoned for crimes they did not commit should lead the voters of Arizona to conclude that it is more than probable that there have been or will be in the future, persons sentence to death in Arizona who did not commit the crime. In fact we know there have been such Arizona cases (see Ray Krone). And that unlike other wrongful convictions, that can be partly compensated monetarily, once a wrongfully convicted person has been put to death, the State is incapable of righting this wrong.

Since the State is not infallible, the voters morally must decide that neither the State of Arizona, nor any of its municipalities, should have the power to sentence anyone to death. Those currently under sentence of death, should have their sentences changed to "spend the rest of their life in prison, without the possibility of parole."

While the Constitution explicitly states that a person can be deprived of their life after due process, this is a power delegated to the government that ought to be rescinded. Worse, the federal government is now using it against people who are not guilty of a capital crime or treason, but rather are using it against businessmen who conduct commerce in a non-government approved business (i.e., "drug kingpins"). Government always expands its power into any area the people allow it to inhabit.

Obviously, I neither expect and fully appreciate that the families and friends of homicide victims will likely not agree with my position. But do you really want to see an innocent person put to death, to match the life stolen from your loved one? Even in the rare case where the murderer was witnessed first hand committing the act, it is best not to let government have the power over life and death. Because if you give government that power it will expand the conditions in which it can use that power, until there are no longer any conditions for its use, other than the government desires it. Then you really will see family members murdered.

Addendum: While the Constitution says a person may be deprived of their life after due process, it suddenly occurred to me that just because it says it in the Constitution does not make it so.

In the Declaration of Independence it states that you have the Right to Life. And that governments are instituted among men to protect this right. Therefore, even with due process, without your consent, government has NO power to deprive anyone of their life. No matter what the Constitution says, it cannot negate a Right. [No matter how much of a low life a human may be.]

Government exists to protect your life. And like everything else it is supposed to exist for, government fails miserably. [I think this is what Ricky Duncan was trying to tell me so many years ago. I should have listened better Ricky.]

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