NOTICE: The following
article is written by the author itself and not by me, I am not trying to
violate their copyright. I will give some information on them. I chose this
article on the Death Penalty of the week in memory of Javad Jay Marshall Fields and Vivian Wolfe.
PAGE TITLE: http://www.denverpost.com/
ARTICLE
TITLE:
Death penalty's fate should be up to Colorado
voters
DATE: Wednesday 13
February 2013
AUTHORS: John Suthers is Colorado's 37th attorney general. State Rep. Rhonda
Fields, D-Aurora, is the mother of Javad Marshall-Fields, who was gunned down
outside his apartment in 2005.
Guest
commentary
Death penalty's fate should
be up to Colorado voters
Posted: 02/13/2013 12:01:00 AM MST
By John Suthers and Rhonda Fields
Re:
"Why
Colorado should end the death penalty," Dec. 27 editorial.
The Denver Post editorial on Colorado's death
penalty was thoughtful and initiated a constructive dialogue on a controversial
issue. We wish to contribute to that conversation by explaining why it is the
people of Colorado who should have the final word on this life-and-death
matter.
Together, as Colorado's attorney general and state
legislator (as well as mother of a murdered son whose executioner currently
sits on death row), we share the belief that capital punishment should remain a
viable punishment for the most heinous crimes. However, we are even stronger in
our belief that it is the people of our state, through the referendum process,
and not their elected representatives, who should decide this important public
policy matter.
The repeal of the death penalty is a divisive issue
that needs to be fully debated and considered. And Coloradans deserve thorough
discussion from all sides, especially in light of last year's highly publicized
tragedies.
What about the argument that there are a certain
few cases when the death penalty is necessary for societal self-defense? There
are recurring examples that have gone unanswered: murderers who kill witnesses,
or a prisoner already serving a life sentence who premeditatively kills a
correctional officer, as happened this summer. Without the death penalty,
society appears defenseless. How can justice be served in these types of
instances?
That question is all too critical to every
Coloradan not to be fully vetted. And, to date, the vetting process is less
than complete.
In the past, Coloradans have twice voted to keep
capital punishment on the books and use it in limited circumstances. The
legislature should not ignore these votes. Rather, they should ask the citizens
of Colorado about their current views on the death penalty. This year, we
should keep up a healthy and respectful dialogue on whether to repeal the death
penalty and then put it to the citizens of Colorado to decide in 2014.
John Suthers is Colorado's 37th attorney general.
State Rep. Rhonda Fields, D-Aurora, is the mother of Javad Marshall-Fields, who
was gunned down outside his apartment in 2005.
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