The Guardian printed comments from those who are far from enthused with Texas Governor Perry’s death penalty preoccuption, including Ray Hill’s remark, “It never strikes him that he should value the lives of those who are accused, even wrongfully.”
Perry killed Steven Woods yesterday, although Woods was a bystander, not a killer … according to the actual killer, Marcus Rhodes.
Perry is killing Duane Buck today, despite admittedly racist testimony unduly influencing sentencing, which was appropriately addressed for other alleged perpetrators involved in the same crime. Perry is killing Buck despite the only surviving victim – Phyllis Taylor – stating for The Texas Tribune, “This execution would only add to my pain, and it wouldn’t give me closure.”
Perry is killing Cleve Foster and Lawrence Brewer next week, and he doesn’t care if there’s any clouds on their convictions or if any victims’ pain will be increased. All he’ll consider is whether society’s misinformed and malicious are still applauding the cold-blooded killing of their fellow Americans.
Should the applause die down, Perry will notice and unabashedly reverse course, like always … he’s no longer a Democrat, no longer a secessionist, no longer a supporter of healthcare reform, etc.
At any given time, Perry’s whatever he perceives the majority wants him to be.
That may be an excellent strategy if one is seeking to become Homecoming Queen. But respected world leader? Please.
Steven Woods chilling final words were reported by Reuters, “You’re not about to witness an execution. You are about to witness a murder. I am strapped down for something Marcus Rhodes did. I never killed nobody, ever,” he said. “Justice has let me down. Somebody completely screwed this up. Well, Warden, if you’re going to murder someone, go ahead and do it. Pull that trigger.”
To my knowledge, no one reported the thoughts of Woods’ two teenage sons, even though without balanced reporting, it’s predictable that Perry’s will come far too close to instituting Lethal Injection De Jour.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/sep/13/rick-perry-texas-death-penalty
http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/09/14/us-execution-texas-idUSTRE78D00H20110914
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