by Jack Lee
(Shown left California’s new and unused gas chamber built at a cost of about $1 million dollars) The death penalty in California has been overturned. In ruling California’s death penalty unconstitutional, a federal judge said Wednesday the system is so broken it unfairly leaves inmates with uncertain fates — often for decades.
In his decision, Santa Ana-based Judge Cormac J. Carney vacated the 1995 death sentence of Ernest D. Jones, who petitioned the court to determine whether his death sentence was valid.
Carney wrote: “Allowing this system to continue to threaten Mr. Jones with the slight possibility of death, almost a generation after he was first sentenced, violates the Eighth Amendment’s prohibition against cruel and unusual punishment.”
California has been the extreme example of a dysfunctional death penalty system unlike any other in the nation. Currently 40% of the inmates have been on death row for over 19 years. It’s far more likely they (inmates) will die from something other than lethal injection.
The decision will certainly be appealed, but until the current decision is vacated all attempts at execution have been placed on hold. California has 748 people on death row, the most of any state. The endless writs and appeals by death row inmates and their attorney’s have clogged CA justice system for decades. It’s been a lucrative venture for trial attorney’s, but just another expensive boondoggle for the taxpayers.
The irony here is the judge’s ruling of a dysfunctional system mirrors the complaints of millions of Californian’s about their entire state government. The public’s approval rating of their legislators has often ranked them among the least liked in the nation. This widespread the dissatisfaction has resulted in several attempts to split the state into 2 or more smaller states in order to make governance more manageable and their legislators more accountable.
Can’t fault the judge. He at least appears to be following our laws.
The state’s legislators appear to be accountable with the voters ultimately responsible.
Hasn’t this been the plan of the Democratic Party all along? If you cannot abolish the death penalty directly through legislation or vote, effectively abolish it by incapacitation and judicial fiat.
“he irony here is the judge’s ruling of a dysfunctional system mirrors the complaints of millions of Californian’s about their entire state government.”
Here, here! The State of Jefferson project is all about that!
Jack bad situation in Stockton today…hope your son and his fellow officers are okay?
Pie: Yes, that’s been the plan all along, ignore the will of the people, then support trial lawyers by making their helpful obstruction pay big money…very tricky.
Tina: Fortunately, my son has gone to work for another police dept. because he was burnt out on Stock-tone. He said this city is overrun with crime. However, he called me today about this holdup and kidnapping. It was very detailed story.
He said SPD was well prepared to handle it, they’ve had lots of practice.
The bank in question was the same bank where 3 years ago he captured 3 of Oakland’s finest citizens trying to escape with the loot while armed to teeth.
Irony is… his neighbor was the lady hostage who was killed. He knew her well. He said she had gone to the bank to use the ATM and her daughter was sitting in the car waiting when the cops rolled in to surround the area. She apparently didn’t notice, like most folks today she was focused on the ATM and not really paying attention to events around her, like the cops rolling in quietly to encircle the bank. If she had noticed them she might have lived. She could have immediately walked away from ATM and got back in her car and saved herself. It was a few seconds later the bad guys realized the cops were outside and they busted out and grabbed her as she stood in front of the ATM. They used two other women as human shields. They survived – she died. Just think, she left her home just to get a few bucks and take her daughter for a hair appt. Never had a clue she would be taken hostage by 3 crazed Hispanic gang members, forced into the getaway car and driven at high speed for almost an hour during a wild shoot out where 14 cop cars were hit.
Pretty sad, eh?
My son said the family of one of the deceased robbers was complaining about excessive force by the cops…go figure. The cops never fired a shot for an hour until they finally were forced to shoot the tires out of the getaway SUV. Then they had them surrounded and the final shootout took place. The guy that lived never had a scratch, the guy next to him looked like swiss cheese.