Quote:
Originally posted by USCTKE
I was just watching Fox News (or some news station) and they were talking about a man who was sentenced to the death penalty I forget what his name was (Tookie?? Wilson or something like that)...he has spent something like 26 years in jail, has written 9 childrens book, and was nominated for a Nobel Peace Prize (dont quite understand how a man convicted of murder can be nominated for a Nobel Peace Prize though)...his lawyers are now arguing to set aside the Death Penalty sentence and just have him serve life in prison (I believe, I kinda came into the room in the middle of the conversation), because they say he has been rehabilitated and it would serve no purpose to kill him...what do yall think about this?
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First, I think that if you are going to pose a question, then you should present all the information.
The man in question is Stanley "Tookie" Williams, and he is a co-founder of the Crips street gang. The Crips originally organized to protect the community from the many street gangs that ran South Central LA. However, over the course of a few years, they developed into a violent street gang. He was sentenced to death for the murder of four people. Since his incarceration, he has written several books encouraging young people to stay away from gangs. Last year, Jamie Foxx portrayed Williams in a movie, "Redemption", which earned Jamie Foxx a Golden Globe nomination. Currently, he is scheduled to be executed by lethal injection on December 13.
Now that I'm done giving background, here's my take: first, I don't believe in capital punishment. It doesn't work as a deterrent, and its actually more expensive to execute someone than to put them in prison for life. Second, I think its great that Mr. Williams has been able to see the error of his past actions and is trying help the community. But that doesn't excuse him from taking someone's life. I don't believe he should be executed (I don't think anyone should be executed) but he should be in prison for the rest of his life.