by Simonne Liberty

Created on: August 22, 2009   Last Updated: August 23, 2009

The Death Penalty is unjust for many reasons. There have been wrongly convicted people put to death for crimes they never committed. It is too late to correct the problem once it is done. This makes the "State the real killers.

There are situations where the law convicts any, and all people involved, or not involved in a crime, if they happen to be with each other when the crime occurs. The law does not care who the real killer was. A case in Ohio several years ago is an example: Sandra Lockett and her brother James had a friend who had a ring he wanted to pawn. They went to the pawn shop to pawn it so they could get some drugs. Sandra drove the two men to the pawn shop. She sat in the car while they went into the pawnshop to pawn the ring. While inside the pawn dealer would not pay them what they wanted for it. The friend suddenly pulled out a gun and shot the pawn dealer.

They ran out to the car and told Sandra to drive off. They were caught. The friend made a deal with the DA to testify states evidence against Sandra and her brother. For his cooperation, he got a sentence of life in prison. Sandra and her brother got the DEATH PENALTY. How can anyone believe that this was a just sentence? The only thing that Sandra and her brother were guilty of, was being addicted to drugs, and having used poor judgment in picking a friend.

Neither one of them killed the man, the man who killed the pawn dealer, got off with life, but Sandra and her brother got the death penalty. How can we consider it justice to murder two people, who in reality did not commit the crime they were convicted of? These type of things happen every single day.

My son had gone to the store for me. His friend had gone with him. On the way out of the store his friend was ahead of him. His friend grabbed a pack of gum on the way out. The security guard saw it, and "both" boys were charged with shop lifting. The friend confessed, and said that my son had no idea what he had done. That does not matter to the law. They were both charged and punished for the very same crime. Justice? It can happen to anyone.

Anyone of us can be caught up in a situation we had no idea would happen, and get punished for the actions of someone else. We do not think for another person, but we can be convicted for what another person does if we are with them. If two people held down a victim while a third beat the person to death. That would be completely different. In that case all three should get the same punishment. There is far too much room for error and injustice, when taking a life as punishment. If one innocent person is to die, than no one should be put to death. That makes us ALL an accessory to murder for allowing it.

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