The other side of child rape and the death penalty

By Libby

In light of a missed precedent, a WaPo editorial today says SCOTUS should rehear the recent child rape case and review their decision to forbid execution of the perpetrator to take into account "national opinion about the death penalty," and "accurately assess the view of the national legislature." Maybe they should, if only to acknowledge the missed case law but if they do so, then they should also acknowledge the needs of the victims, who have been woefully overlooked in the debate over this issue.

I've read thousands of words about this decision, much of it harshly critical of the court, but the two opinions that moved me the most were two courageous accounts of personal experience as victims of child abusers. The last thing they would have wanted was for their abusers to be executed. Both should be read in full but let me pull out a couple of pertinent quotes.

Barry Crimmins, whom I know personally, was viciously abused and says this:

I wouldn't have wanted my rapist put out of his own misery and into mine. I started life without blood on my hands and I aim to keep it that way. Had the man who raped me on numerous occasions not died in prison while serving his third term for sexually abusing very young boys, I might have gone to see him. My personal revenge would have been to show him that I did not become what I resisted, that I hadn't grown into a cruel and heartless man. I would have told him that he inflicted a burden upon me that almost killed me, and not just when I was nearly asphyxiated during his savage assaults. I'd have told him of the encumbrance I dragged along with me for decades that, through hard work, I had managed to lighten. In short, I would tell him that although he inflicted a lot of pain upon me, he had not succeeded in ruining me. Then I would tell him that I was sorry that he had such a miserable and wasted life. Finally, I would ask him why he thought he had ended up doing the things he did. Maybe I would have discovered some context for the man, even if I had to sort it out of the manipulative lies for which pedophiles are deservedly notorious.

Avedon in an equally eloquent post also tells us that capital punishment would not have felt like justice served for herself.

But I do know that I'm glad no one was executed "on my behalf" to satisfy adults who, as usual, would have been more interested in their own outrage than in my needs. That would only have added to the burden. [...]

I'll tell you what's pretty horrible and shocking, though: having the authorities asking you a lot of prurient questions because they are so obsessed with "getting the guy that did it" that they completely overlook what it's doing to you. I hated that.

Both overcame their trauma. I imagine it was difficult but to have also had to bear the burden of knowing, as a child, that someone was executed because of them I think would only have doubled the trauma. So what purpose would have served in executing their abusers? I'd say none.

My colleague, Capt Fogg put it very eloquently in a post at our place and again, should be read in full but here's the money quote.

Yes, I would love to inflict a great deal of suffering on people who rape children. Given the opportunity I probably would, but I do not try to fool myself that I'm talking about justice. I want revenge because revenge feels good and if feels good because like anyone who reads this, I am an animal and the heir to a host of animal instincts and emotions. Instinct is expressed as the urge to do what feels good. Somehow I believe that justice needs more justification than that.

Capital punishment is never the right answer, no matter how heinous the crime. There's no definitive evidence that proves it's a deterrent and there's ample instances of many people now being exonerated by DNA evidence after being wrongly convicted of terrible crimes and spending long years in prison. We can release them and make some reparation for robbing them of their freedom; none can be made for taking an innocent life.

Capital punishment doesn't protect us from criminals and it diminishes us as a society. Killing under sanction of the state makes us all murderers. Where's the justice in that?

Comments

[Mark]

There is something else that gets lost in the shuffle in this debate that severely undermines the demagogues' arguments. That is that at least one victims' group that I know of filed an amicus brief in the case opposing the death penalty. The reason? The existence of the death penalty for child rape created an incentive for the rapist to kill the victim.
As a matter of constitutional law, I don't think that argument should be relevant. But as a matter of public policy debate, it is extremely relevant and completely destroys the notion that this is about victims' rights. In fact, what it says is that, in this instance, respect for victims dictates not imposing the death penalty in the hopes of saving victims' lives.
For politicans and talking heads. to talk on and on about the nonexistent deterrent effect of the death penalty and ignore the arguments of victims' groups against the death penalty is abhorrent enough. To do so under the guise of protecting victims' rights when so many victims view this as a way of only hurting them more is dishonest vote-seeking demagoguery of the highest order.

[Libby]

Well said Mark and an important point that I didn't add because the post was already long.

[Michael]

Another point that seems to get lost here in discussing child rape -- the eighteen year old who has sex with his fifteen year old girlfriend has committed rape of a child under the law.

[Michael]

Now there are good reasons that we have laws about age of consent and statutory rape is a real crime, but should that be a hanging offense?

[Libby]

As I said, I don't believe we should ever kill even the worst of offenders. It just makes us murderers too and it does nothing to mitigate the effects of the crimes.

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