N.J. bans death penalty
my2hands
Posts: 17,117
N.J. bans death penalty By TOM HESTER Jr., Associated Press Writer
43 minutes ago
Gov. Jon S. Corzine signed into law Monday a measure that abolishes the death penalty, making New Jersey the first state in more than four decades to reject capital punishment.
The bill, approved last week by the state's Assembly and Senate, replaces the death sentence with life in prison without parole.
"This is a day of progress for us and for the millions of people across our nation and around the globe who reject the death penalty as a moral or practical response to the grievous, even heinous, crime of murder," Corzine said.
The measure spares eight men on the state's death row. On Sunday, Corzine signed orders commuting the sentences of those eight to life in prison without parole.
Among the eight spared is Jesse Timmendequas, a sex offender who murdered 7-year-old Megan Kanka in 1994. The case inspired Megan's Law, which requires law enforcement agencies to notify the public about convicted sex offenders living in their communities.
New Jersey reinstated the death penalty in 1982 — six years after the U.S. Supreme Court allowed states to resume executions — but it hasn't executed anyone since 1963.
The state's move is being hailed across the world as a historic victory against capital punishment. Rome plans to shine golden light on the Colosseum in support. Once the arena for deadly gladiator combat and executions, the Colosseum is now a symbol of the fight against the death penalty.
"The rest of America, and for that matter the entire world, is watching what we are doing here today," said Assemblyman Wilfredo Caraballo, a Democrat. "New Jersey is setting a precedent that I'm confident other states will follow."
The bill passed the Legislature largely along party lines, with controlling Democrats supporting the abolition and minority Republicans opposed. Republicans had sought to retain the death penalty for those who murder law enforcement officials, rape and murder children, and terrorists, but Democrats rejected that.
"It's simply a specious argument to say that, somehow, after six millennia of recorded history, the punishment no longer fits the crime," said Assemblyman Joseph Malone, a Republican.
Members of victims' families fought against the law.
"I will never forget how I've been abused by a state and a governor that was supposed to protect the innocent and enforce the laws," said Marilyn Flax, whose husband Irving was abducted and murdered in 1989 by death row inmate John Martini Sr.
The last states to eliminate the death penalty were Iowa and West Virginia in 1965, according to the National Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty.
The nation has executed 1,099 people since the U.S. Supreme Court reauthorized the death penalty in 1976. In 1999, 98 people were executed, the most since 1976; last year 53 people were executed, the lowest since 1996.
Other states have considered abolishing the death penalty recently, but none has advanced as far as New Jersey.
The nation's last execution was Sept. 25 in Texas. Since then, executions have been delayed pending a U.S. Supreme Court decision on whether execution through lethal injection violates the constitutional ban on cruel and unusual punishment.
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On the Net:
Amnesty International USA: http://www.amnestyusa.org/
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20071217/ap_on_re_us/death_penalty_new_jersey&printer=1;_ylt=AhcZYFlAdS2EdvnV6irsv0NH2ocA
Death Penalty Information Center: http://www.deathpenaltyinfo.org/
43 minutes ago
Gov. Jon S. Corzine signed into law Monday a measure that abolishes the death penalty, making New Jersey the first state in more than four decades to reject capital punishment.
The bill, approved last week by the state's Assembly and Senate, replaces the death sentence with life in prison without parole.
"This is a day of progress for us and for the millions of people across our nation and around the globe who reject the death penalty as a moral or practical response to the grievous, even heinous, crime of murder," Corzine said.
The measure spares eight men on the state's death row. On Sunday, Corzine signed orders commuting the sentences of those eight to life in prison without parole.
Among the eight spared is Jesse Timmendequas, a sex offender who murdered 7-year-old Megan Kanka in 1994. The case inspired Megan's Law, which requires law enforcement agencies to notify the public about convicted sex offenders living in their communities.
New Jersey reinstated the death penalty in 1982 — six years after the U.S. Supreme Court allowed states to resume executions — but it hasn't executed anyone since 1963.
The state's move is being hailed across the world as a historic victory against capital punishment. Rome plans to shine golden light on the Colosseum in support. Once the arena for deadly gladiator combat and executions, the Colosseum is now a symbol of the fight against the death penalty.
"The rest of America, and for that matter the entire world, is watching what we are doing here today," said Assemblyman Wilfredo Caraballo, a Democrat. "New Jersey is setting a precedent that I'm confident other states will follow."
The bill passed the Legislature largely along party lines, with controlling Democrats supporting the abolition and minority Republicans opposed. Republicans had sought to retain the death penalty for those who murder law enforcement officials, rape and murder children, and terrorists, but Democrats rejected that.
"It's simply a specious argument to say that, somehow, after six millennia of recorded history, the punishment no longer fits the crime," said Assemblyman Joseph Malone, a Republican.
Members of victims' families fought against the law.
"I will never forget how I've been abused by a state and a governor that was supposed to protect the innocent and enforce the laws," said Marilyn Flax, whose husband Irving was abducted and murdered in 1989 by death row inmate John Martini Sr.
The last states to eliminate the death penalty were Iowa and West Virginia in 1965, according to the National Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty.
The nation has executed 1,099 people since the U.S. Supreme Court reauthorized the death penalty in 1976. In 1999, 98 people were executed, the most since 1976; last year 53 people were executed, the lowest since 1996.
Other states have considered abolishing the death penalty recently, but none has advanced as far as New Jersey.
The nation's last execution was Sept. 25 in Texas. Since then, executions have been delayed pending a U.S. Supreme Court decision on whether execution through lethal injection violates the constitutional ban on cruel and unusual punishment.
___
On the Net:
Amnesty International USA: http://www.amnestyusa.org/
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20071217/ap_on_re_us/death_penalty_new_jersey&printer=1;_ylt=AhcZYFlAdS2EdvnV6irsv0NH2ocA
Death Penalty Information Center: http://www.deathpenaltyinfo.org/
Post edited by Unknown User on
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Comments
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thank you to my friendly neighbors to the immediate north/east...
progress is possible... thanks for taking the lead on this one
New Jersey gets a bad rep for bad drivers, exit number hometowns and such... but i have met some BEAUTIFUL people from the Garden State
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Cool news. Well done, NJ...here's to hoping that other states follow their lead.0
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my2hands wrote:New Jersey gets a bad rep for bad drivers
The bad drivers in NJ are usually New Yorkers passing through the state. New Jersey has some of the best drivers. Our insurance premiums are so god damn high that we are too damn scared to get into an accident.
I'm damn proud of my state for taking this step. The death penalty is useless as it does not deter crime and ends up costing the tax payers more money than just incarcirating a criminal for life."When one gets in bed with government, one must expect the diseases it spreads." - Ron Paul0 -
I'm so excited about this that I think I'll go on a murderous rampage to celebrate!
I kid, I kid.
In all seriousness, this makes me proud. I hope other states will follow.0 -
Among the eight men whose sentences were commuted to life in prison is Jesse Timmendequas, 46, who was sentenced to death in June 1997 for the rape and muder of Megan Kanka -- the 1994 crime that inspired "Megan's Law". Prosecutors said Timmendequas lured Megan to his home by saying he wanted to show her a puppy. He then raped her, beat her and strangled her with a belt. A day later, he led police to her body.
"Megan's Law," introduced after her death, requires that authorities notify neighbors when a sex offender moves into an area. Timmendequas had twice been convicted of sex crimes -- on 5- and 7-year-olds -- before he murdered Megan.
http://www.crimelibrary.com/criminal_mind/sexual_assault/child_sex_offenders/4.html
... would have been nice if they offed this fvcker first.I don't want to be hostile. I don't want to be dismal. But I don't want to rot in an apathetic existance either.0 -
harrymanback wrote:Among the eight men whose sentences were commuted to life in prison is Jesse Timmendequas, 46, who was sentenced to death in June 1997 for the rape and muder of Megan Kanka -- the 1994 crime that inspired "Megan's Law". Prosecutors said Timmendequas lured Megan to his home by saying he wanted to show her a puppy. He then raped her, beat her and strangled her with a belt. A day later, he led police to her body.
"Megan's Law," introduced after her death, requires that authorities notify neighbors when a sex offender moves into an area. Timmendequas had twice been convicted of sex crimes -- on 5- and 7-year-olds -- before he murdered Megan.
http://www.crimelibrary.com/criminal_mind/sexual_assault/child_sex_offenders/4.html
... would have been nice if they offed this fvcker first.
A more suitable punishment would be to place him in general population."When one gets in bed with government, one must expect the diseases it spreads." - Ron Paul0 -
Yep, gotta love NJ for banning a law it hasn't enforced since 1963 and that the state supreme court had already banned in 2004. I'm sure there aren't any more important issues going on right now in the state that the legislature had to have a vote to ban this.
It's a nice gesture, but overall a waste of tax payer money.- Busted down the pretext
- 8/28/98
- 9/2/00
- 4/28/03, 5/3/03, 7/3/03, 7/5/03, 7/6/03, 7/9/03, 7/11/03, 7/12/03, 7/14/03
- 9/28/04, 9/29/04, 10/1/04, 10/2/04
- 9/11/05, 9/12/05, 9/13/05, 9/30/05, 10/1/05, 10/3/05
- 5/12/06, 5/13/06, 5/27/06, 5/28/06, 5/30/06, 6/1/06, 6/3/06, 6/23/06, 7/22/06, 7/23/06, 12/2/06, 12/9/06
- 8/2/07, 8/5/07
- 6/19/08, 6/20/08, 6/22/08, 6/24/08, 6/25/08, 6/27/08, 6/28/08, 6/30/08, 7/1/08
- 8/23/09, 8/24/09, 9/21/09, 9/22/09, 10/27/09, 10/28/09, 10/30/09, 10/31/09
- 5/15/10, 5/17/10, 5/18/10, 5/20/10, 5/21/10, 10/23/10, 10/24/10
- 9/11/11, 9/12/11
- 10/18/13, 10/21/13, 10/22/13, 11/30/13, 12/4/130 -
Solat13 wrote:
It's a nice gesture, but overall a waste of tax payer money.
That sums up my Jersey pretty well.I don't want to be hostile. I don't want to be dismal. But I don't want to rot in an apathetic existance either.0 -
I just read that by commuting the sentences that the 8 who were previously on death row have now been sentenced to life without parole. The problem is that this new sentence could possibly be illegal and that these 8 may in fact have to eligible for life sentences with parole now.
This is due to the legal standard of ex post facto, which bars people from being punished under laws that didn't exist when they committed an act.
So instead of letting these 8 people just sit in jail for the rest of their lives with no hope of parole and no chance of being executed because the state supreme court had already put a stop to the death penalty 2004. (You could still be sentenced to death in NJ, but the state could not go through with the execution.) The state has now opened the door that these murderers could possibly be paroled.
Good job there NJ.- Busted down the pretext
- 8/28/98
- 9/2/00
- 4/28/03, 5/3/03, 7/3/03, 7/5/03, 7/6/03, 7/9/03, 7/11/03, 7/12/03, 7/14/03
- 9/28/04, 9/29/04, 10/1/04, 10/2/04
- 9/11/05, 9/12/05, 9/13/05, 9/30/05, 10/1/05, 10/3/05
- 5/12/06, 5/13/06, 5/27/06, 5/28/06, 5/30/06, 6/1/06, 6/3/06, 6/23/06, 7/22/06, 7/23/06, 12/2/06, 12/9/06
- 8/2/07, 8/5/07
- 6/19/08, 6/20/08, 6/22/08, 6/24/08, 6/25/08, 6/27/08, 6/28/08, 6/30/08, 7/1/08
- 8/23/09, 8/24/09, 9/21/09, 9/22/09, 10/27/09, 10/28/09, 10/30/09, 10/31/09
- 5/15/10, 5/17/10, 5/18/10, 5/20/10, 5/21/10, 10/23/10, 10/24/10
- 9/11/11, 9/12/11
- 10/18/13, 10/21/13, 10/22/13, 11/30/13, 12/4/130 -
Solat13 wrote:I just read that by commuting the sentences that the 8 who were previously on death row have now been sentenced to life without parole. The problem is that this new sentence could possibly be illegal and that these 8 may in fact have to eligible for life sentences with parole now.
This is due to the legal standard of ex post facto, which bars people from being punished under laws that didn't exist when they committed an act.
So instead of letting these 8 people just sit in jail for the rest of their lives with no hope of parole and no chance of being executed because the state supreme court had already put a stop to the death penalty 2004. (You could still be sentenced to death in NJ, but the state could not go through with the execution.) The state has now opened the door that these murderers could possibly be paroled.
Good job there NJ.
that will never happen
nice try good buddy... progress is happening... enjoy it 0 -
my2hands wrote:that will never happen
nice try good buddy... progress is happening... enjoy it
How is it progress? The death penalty hasn't been enforced in NJ since 1963. How about dealing with some issues that actually affect the present. What's next Congress wasting tax payer money trying to decide whether to censure Turkey for a genocide that happened over a hundred years ago? Oh wait that did happen.
I think that the governor and state assembly of NJ would have been better served trying to deal with the issue of property taxes and the huge corruption scandals Corzine and the McGreevy had had instead of grandstanding and making a spectacle out of non issue, but that's what Dems do.
I just love the fact that Corzine ran as governor on a policy of lowering property taxes for the state and often stated during his campaign that he would not raise taxes and then all of 8 days after being sworn in announces one of the largest tax increases the state of NJ has had in decades.- Busted down the pretext
- 8/28/98
- 9/2/00
- 4/28/03, 5/3/03, 7/3/03, 7/5/03, 7/6/03, 7/9/03, 7/11/03, 7/12/03, 7/14/03
- 9/28/04, 9/29/04, 10/1/04, 10/2/04
- 9/11/05, 9/12/05, 9/13/05, 9/30/05, 10/1/05, 10/3/05
- 5/12/06, 5/13/06, 5/27/06, 5/28/06, 5/30/06, 6/1/06, 6/3/06, 6/23/06, 7/22/06, 7/23/06, 12/2/06, 12/9/06
- 8/2/07, 8/5/07
- 6/19/08, 6/20/08, 6/22/08, 6/24/08, 6/25/08, 6/27/08, 6/28/08, 6/30/08, 7/1/08
- 8/23/09, 8/24/09, 9/21/09, 9/22/09, 10/27/09, 10/28/09, 10/30/09, 10/31/09
- 5/15/10, 5/17/10, 5/18/10, 5/20/10, 5/21/10, 10/23/10, 10/24/10
- 9/11/11, 9/12/11
- 10/18/13, 10/21/13, 10/22/13, 11/30/13, 12/4/130 -
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Im pretty much pro- death penalty, but if they werent going to use the damn thing anyways, might as well ban it.0
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Congrats NJ!Peace,
________________________
Too many shows but never enough!
These guys are the fruit of the earth...0 -
Solat13 wrote:How is it progress? The death penalty hasn't been enforced in NJ since 1963. How about dealing with some issues that actually affect the present. What's next Congress wasting tax payer money trying to decide whether to censure Turkey for a genocide that happened over a hundred years ago? Oh wait that did happen.
I think that the governor and state assembly of NJ would have been better served trying to deal with the issue of property taxes and the huge corruption scandals Corzine and the McGreevy had had instead of grandstanding and making a spectacle out of non issue, but that's what Dems do.
I just love the fact that Corzine ran as governor on a policy of lowering property taxes for the state and often stated during his campaign that he would not raise taxes and then all of 8 days after being sworn in announces one of the largest tax increases the state of NJ has had in decades.
it seems to me that you are against anything a "democrat" or "democrats" do...
i could be wrong... but thats how i have seen it...
a state abloshing the death penatly is progress. maybe not to you, but to me it is major progress. it doesnt matter if it hasnt been used (thank god it hasnt), it is the fact that the State of New Jersey has banned it and passed that into law that counts. not how many times it was used. and as i said. i hope they can handle more then 1 issue at a time.
i am looking at the macro picture on this one good buddy... any state officially banning the death penalty is a great thing IMO0 -
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my2hands wrote:if i may ask...
why is that?
The earth has enough fuckfaces.
If good people can get killed on any given day... why should the assholes get a chance to live?0 -
because good people get framed by bad people every day....do you never know if someone is guilty....and its cheaper to keep them alive....Skitch Patterson wrote:The earth has enough fuckfaces.
If good people can get killed on any given day... why should the assholes get a chance to live?10-18-2000 Houston, 04-06-2003 Houston, 6-25-2003 Toronto, 10-8-2004 Kissimmee, 9-4-2005 Calgary, 12-3-05 Sao Paulo, 7-2-2006 Denver, 7-22-06 Gorge, 7-23-2006 Gorge, 9-13-2006 Bern, 6-22-2008 DC, 6-24-2008 MSG, 6-25-2008 MSG0
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