N.J. bans death penalty
my2hands
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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.
___
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
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
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.
I kid, I kid.
In all seriousness, this makes me proud. I hope other states will follow.
"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.
It's a nice gesture, but overall a waste of tax payer money.
- 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, 12/4/13
That sums up my Jersey pretty well.
agreed
Oh I am sure we are going to be in for a lot more waste in the coming year... Gotta love Jersey
www.seanbrady.net
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.
- 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, 12/4/13
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.
- 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, 12/4/13
________________________
Too many shows but never enough!
These guys are the fruit of the earth...
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 IMO
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?
How do you feel about the US being the only western country still using the death penalty? Doesn't it say something when every other modernised country is the world has banned it?
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/jmgphotos/4731512142/" title="PJ Banner2 by Mister J Photography, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1135/4731512142_258f2d6ab4_b.jpg" width="630" height="112" alt="PJ Banner2" /></a>
ok, so some animal that goes around raping, torturing and killing 5 year old boys and girls should be kept alive because it is "cheaper?"
i'd like you to explain that logic to the parents of such victims.
Does killing the sickfuck really help the parents grieve any easier?
the death penalty is useless and it doesn't solve anything.
a life sentence without parole would be just fine. the sicko will rot the rest of his miserable life getting tortured by other inmates is more cruel than just killing him.
although i think the prison condition should be as cruel as possible for rapists, pedos, and murderers. i.e. just strip them away of human contact and society, not even among prisoners. no view of the outside world.
EV- 08/09,10/2008.06/08,09/2009
honestly? i think it does. those parents now have a certain piece of mind, and can go to bed every night knowing the asshole responsible for their heinous crime is no longer walking the earth.
criminals like that, go to jail, adapt and accept their new lifestyle and live their life. watch cable TV and eat 3 warm meals a day.
personally? i'd rather the fucker rot in the ground.
My best friend's brother was murdered 3 summers ago. He was shot in the back with a crossbow in his sleep and then multiple times while running away and then hacked to death with a machete after he couldn't stand anymore by his "friend" after my friend's brother told him he should get off drugs because he had a baby coming.
I know at least for my friend and his parents every Christmas and birthday that passes it hurts them more and more that their son/brother is no longer with them while his killer is living relatively comfortably in a cell, watches tv, goes to the gym and eats three meals a day while they pay part of the tab through their taxes.
I'm sorry but because of that I'm pro death penalty and probably always will be.
- 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, 12/4/13
I am a filthy animal because i dont mind seeing assholes get put to death.
Im going to burn in hell, blah blah blah. I know. I get it. you're not going to change my mind.
Ok, you condescending ass, youve reeled me in. Ill "get" what? Your viewpoint? Because you look at things in a different way, you are somehow better than I am, or of a higher mind? When i get older and wiser ill see things your way?
Please, enlighten me and raise me out of my heathen ways.