Much was made last week of the Jodi Arias jury’s failure to reach a decision on the death penalty, after she was convicted of the first degree murder of her former boyfriend Travis Alexander in a lengthy, sensationalized Arizona trial. Was there just one stubborn holdout? (No. The vote, reportedly, was 8-4 for execution.) Was it the fact that eight of the twelve jurors were male, and men don’t want to put a young, attractive woman to death? (Maybe.) Was it our system’s well-documented racial bias, in which African-Americans and men are far more likely to be sentenced to death than white women? (Probably, in part.)
But almost never discussed was the context: Americans have increasingly lost our zeal for the death penalty, even in cruel, savage murder cases like this one. (Arias shot her victim in the head, and stabbed him in the back and elsewhere nearly thirty times, cutting his throat ear to ear, nearly decapitating him.) A few weeks ago Maryland abolished the death penalty, becoming the sixth state in six years to do so. Overall, eighteen states have eliminated it. And for good reason.
Human error will always be present
DNA evidence has exonerated convicted death row inmates, and given that our justice system will always be administered by humans, human error will always be present. We cannot accept a system in which that error cannot be corrected, and death is irreversible. Study after study has proven beyond a shadow of a doubt that racism is a pernicious factor in determining who lives and who dies. The race of the victim, in particular, is often decisive. Counterintuitively, the death penalty is far more expensive to taxpayers than life in prison without the possibility of parole, because death row inmates are, and must be, entitled to numerous expensive appeals. The death penalty does not deter criminal behavior, and it’s marred by prosecutorial and law enforcement corruption, a prime reason why four our of five Maryland death penalty convictions were overturned on appeal between 1995 and 2007.
The only advantage of the death penalty is retribution, a not inconsiderable upside. Having analyzed the repulsive details of nearly every high profile American murder case in the last dozen years as a television legal analyst, I have ached for the ultimate punishment for evildoers like David Westerfield or John Couey, who kidnapped, raped and hideously murdered little girls. There is injustice each day men like this continue to breathe, to laugh, to read, to eat a meal.
But there is greater injustice in the death penalty, which is why nearly every other developed country in the world has abolished it, some a century or more ago. The UK, France, Canada, Australia and nearly every other country with democratic values similar to ours have abolished it. As a death penalty nation, the United States remains in the company of countries like Iraq, Yemen, Saudi Arabia and North Korea.
Perfection is impossible
The Supreme Court has held that only juries can sentence a defendant to death, and American juries have increasingly declined to do so as awareness of the shortcomings of our system have come to light. As Colorado Governor John Hickenlooper said last week, in granting a temporary reprieve to a quadruple murderer: “If the State of Colorado is going to undertake the responsibility of executing a human being, the system must operate flawlessly.” He acknowledged that Colorado was far from it. And the rest of us should acknowledge that perfection is a standard our system can never attain.
Most likely, the Arias jury vote is a recognition of that human fallibility. Whether Arias ends up with a sentence of life without parole or death, she will spend the rest of her days incarcerated and die in prison. As one juror said after the trial, “she is sentenced to death no matter what.”
The opinions expressed here represent my own and not necessarily those of Avvo.com.
13 comments
rockieph
Faith Denise Rossell..... I believe you are wrong about the prosecutor in the Jodi Arias' trial. Even though I believe that only God can give and take life, I wonder though, about the rights of the victims. How about the victims, do they have any say so in the matter when they are being slaughtered or murdered by any means? Why do the If the death sentence is murder, what are the murderers doing? I am confident that someday they will pay the price in the presence of the High Priest, however, they have to be accountable for their evil doing in this Earth. Stop defending evil, that is why it is growing. The criminals have more rights than the average person, like in the Jodi Arias' murder trial, she did manipulate and took advantage of the system, got a fair trial, and did not change her mind about the crime she committed. In her mind, she is justified, she is not sorry, she is the victim. I wonder if you would have the same opinion, had it been your son in Travis Alexander's place!
Pikgitar
And you shall continue to wonder while taking comfort in "knowing" that your belief will protect and comfort you. Now I ask you if you think you know what Jesus would do? Does that question ever enter your thought processes when you are judging another's actions? What if it was your daughter that was accused of murder? The thing is that I don't wonder about what you believe because I know what I believe is that you don't know what to believe because justice is only as blind as the the fool who can't see why the accused have any rights at all. I really doubt you even comprehend what a reasonable doubt is. You no doubt had your notions of guilt regarding Jody long before the conclusion of the trial. You would not be on any jury I would voir dire..
a2plusb2
Persuasive arguments, as far as the practical legalisms in America go.
Question: Did the top twelve Nazis tried at Nuremberg deserve their death penalties?
Now, take your argument, Ms. Bloom, and argue it to members of the Bloods, Crips, al Qaeda and Tony Soprano. Will you be able to persuade them to stop executing people who have transgressed their code(s)-of-"right-and-wrong"?
Geoffrey Britain
The author states, "The death penalty does not deter criminal behavior...The only advantage of the death penalty is retribution"
Au contraire! When the death penalty is applied the murderer is deterred from ever committing another murder again. I would also argue that the high probability that murderers will NOT receive the death penalty for egregious acts of murder is as much a factor as disregard for the death penalty. "The convicted murderer in the United States serves, on average, just six years in prison."-- (Atlantic Monthly; Sept. '97, "A Grief Like No Other")
Those who assert that the societal purpose of the death penalty is retribution are mistakenly confusing personal motivation with society's consideration of the common good. Someone who murders has unilaterally forfeited their own right to life. By their own action, in unjustly abrogating their victims right to life, they have abrogated their own right to life. From a societal perspective, the death penalty is not retributive, it is consequential. A society that refuses to recognize the straightforward logic of consequence, compounds the injustice of murder.
CincinnatiDavid
Ms. Bloom's point is that you can oppose the death penalty WITHOUT having to be a Jodi Arias apologist like Faith Denise Rossell fantasizing about Prosecutor Martinez pouting. Actually, at least some of the jurors reportedly found Martinez to be a passionate advocate for the victim. In fact, you can consider Jodi to be entirely evil and yet feel that the death penalty is barbaric or dangerous to apply in general (even though the murderer is known in this specific case).
Admittedly the jurors all initially asserted they could impose the DP. But this was an inexperienced assertion.
I think the Arias' jurors' opposition went beyond male lust. At least one juror was reportedly female. My impression is that most men would only be INITIALLY attracted to her physically. Evidently, not Travis until too late.
Faith Denise Rossell
really, cincinnatidavid? travis had sex with her the day of his transition. i fully understand ms. bloom's point. what are you qualifications? did you speak to the jurors or did you get juan's autograph? a man who uses a woman for sex while looking for a virgin wife is abusive. totally disagree with you. the death penalty is always wrong. just because it is legal doesn't make it right.
Pikgitar
I see your logic, Faith. You think things through while not letting emotions colour your thoughts. Religion is all too often used as a filter for applying guilt while rationalizing using excuses like " an eye for an eye" and other stupid brain clogging quips. I wonder how many of those who would like to be the executioner understand this: "One only looks behind the closet door because he/she has hidden there before." From me, Faith, you receive an up arrow. Stay true.
jennifer malek
My brother was executed by the state of Texas. All it created was another grief stricken family. I appreciate your article.
Faith Denise Rossell
Your persuasive arguments against the death penalty are imperative to initiate progress towards changing our "justice" system and riding it of a murderous mentality. The death penalty is murder. It's just "legal" murder.
Ideally, it would benefit all American citizens to search their consciousness on the death penalty.
I follow you on twitter because you are a living breathing example of what an authentic defense attorney should be. Too many "defense" attorneys spouting their paid opinions on the news spout views and perspectives that I find alarming. They fail to support defense attorneys in trials and lean more towards the prosecutors.
I found the behavior of the prosecution trial in Arias vs AZ suspicious. A person who twists and distorts the truth, bullies, verbally batters, and attacks their character untrustworthy. After the jury found that they were unable to agree on sentencing, he sat in his seat pouting like a three year old in time out. Why because he was unable to execute (murder) the defendant?
To reiterate, it does my heart good to know there are still attorneys who are truly interested in the people. Thank you.
Len C
Relly !! You try to make it look like that YOUR opinion is the right one and the 1-10 people in America are wrong in believing in the dp , but yours is just 1 opinion .
Regards. Not holy'er than thou.
Pikgitar
Who cares what you think, I am wrong if I like the death penalty and if you don't stop and think about what you really think then you will continue in ignorance like the fool you become. You are not right even if I am wrong and I am right to think you're wrong and then I can see that I was always right to think that the death penalty is wrong and there is no question that if you think the death penalty is alright then you are the one that is totally wrong and you know that in your heart but you won't admit it. At least not if you live in Texas.
Len C
So if a family member of yours ,and God forbid it happens , but that 7-8-9 year old girl was kidnapped and raped to death over a 3 or 4 day period , was found to only be a mean sex deviate with no mental problems , knows what he was doing was wrong , and in court laughed and said to the family to bad for u I liked it and And would do it again , you might have a different opinion ,
Pikgitar
I would still have a belief that the death penalty is murder. I have emotional thoughts regarding what I would do, would like to do, But for the most part I try to think and reason outside the emotional aspects and when I do think that way I still come to the conclusion that the wrong person is all too often convicted as proven by the Innocence Project. Since it's inception Barry Scheck and many others have reversed well over 300 death row inmate's convictions. You should think about that when you want to push your thoughts about what the death penalty means when it's in operation. I want NO PART of capital Punishment. NOT IN MY NAME, murder by the state. It's wrong.