Is It Time to Bring Back Public Hanging?
By Mike Bibb
"Instead, let him dwell on what it's going to feel like when the last thing he hears is the trap door of the gallows swinging wide, the weight of his own sins pulling him through the opening as his Adam's apple and larynx are instantly crushed and his neck snaps at the end of the hangman's rope. His near lifeless body jerks and twists until his lungs give up the last bit of oxygen. Afterword, he can explain his motives to Jesus and see if he thinks he's innocent."
The last public hanging in the United States took place on August 14, 1936 in Owensboro, Kentucky. Rainey
Bethea was executed for robbing, raping and murdering a 70-year-old woman named Lischia Edwards.
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Since we're more restrictive in the use of capital punishment, in many cases delaying it for decades for certain individuals or completely ignoring it for others, the rate of particularly heinous crimes is becoming more noticeable.
Contributing to the conspicuous observation of these criminal acts is the abundance of public and private cameras and video recording devices. They're everywhere.
You can see them attached to buildings, traffic corners, street signs, buses and light-rail transportation systems, private residences and door bells.
Then, of course, nearly everyone is carrying one embedded in their cell phones.
The recent videoed brutal murder of a young lady on a passenger rail car in North Carolina has brought the ugly fact to the public's attention that certain crimes demand prompt resolution and punishment.
To delay punishment is to delay justice.
A 23-year-old woman was attacked and stabbed in the neck by a male individual sitting behind her. She bled to death in a few seconds. No one came to her rescue.
The perpetrator then walked up and down the aisle, his knife dripping blood, mumbling "I just killed a white woman. I just killed a white woman. I don't think I'm gonna die."
This same dude had over a dozen previous convictions, served several jail terms and time in prison, but was still walking around the streets, carrying a knife to do harm to someone.
Every second of this horrendous crime was caught on camera. A defense team will have difficulty disputing it. They can only argue the mental condition of the individual may have been a contributing factor to his criminal behavior.
To which I say "Bull shit! So what if his brain wasn't functioning right? How does that excuse the fact he purposely, and with malicious intent, viciously murdered another individual simply because he wanted to?"
He committed the crime — no one else did. If he's sane or crazy, it's still the same guy, and it's still murder in the First Degree.
Secondly, why should society and the taxpayers maintain this person for the rest of his natural life? What could he possibly do to redeem himself, or become a useful member of the community?
Murder is the ultimate crime. It is something no amount of money or leniency can repair or forgive. A murderer cannot give back the life he has taken by saying "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have done it. Please forgive me."
A pathetic plea from a subhuman piece of crap that has no visible signs of remorse or shame for his crimes. Other than the fact he got caught.
A similar case took place in Idaho involving the murder of four college students. The perpetrator, after reaching a plea deal, was sentenced to four life terms in prison.
Why? What does society hope to gain by feeding, clothing and housing this reprobate for the rest of his life?
On the flip side, a victim's grave headstone is forever. They don't have the option of returning to their families and friends or living the remainder of their lives pursuing whatever dreams and goals they may have.
Consequently, why should a convicted murderer be treated any differently? What makes him so special that he can avoid lethal injection because "It's the compassionate thing to do."
Likewise, why should a person who viciously jabbed a knife into a victim's neck and paraded around announcing his crime, be eventually put to death by simply having a prison doctor gently insert a small hypodermic needle into one of his veins, then he drifts off to permanent sleep in a few minutes?
Isn't this the easy way out?
There's been discussions of bringing back old style "Capital Punishment." Principally, death by hanging; something that hasn't been done in this country since 1936 or 1937.
With social norms drifting more towards the rights of the criminal, versus the rights of the victim, we've gotten used to the fact that crimes of an extreme nature — while providing tantalizing public entertainment — are frequently decided in favor of whomever has the cleverest lawyer.
Even if a conviction is reached, a judge can decide the severity of the punishment, based upon various laws and circumstances.
However, when it is absolutely established, following judgement and appeals, that an individual has committed such an atrocious and irreparable criminal act that no other justification can be presented to sustain his life, then that person finally realizes his time is over.
In my opinion, he shouldn't have been thinking all this time that if he dies in prison, it will be by dozing off from a chemical jab.
Instead, let him dwell on what it's going to feel like when the last thing he hears is the trap door of the gallows swinging wide, the weight of his own sins pulling him through the opening as his Adam's apple and larynx are instantly crushed and his neck snaps at the end of the hangman's rope. His near lifeless body jerks and twists until his lungs give up the last bit of oxygen.
It's not pretty, but it's final.
Afterword, he can explain his motives to Jesus and see if he thinks he's innocent.
"Oh, Mike, that's barbarian and not the Christian way!" some will say.
To which I'll reply "Neither was cruelly stabbing a young lady in the neck until she bled to death."
It's time to take off the gloves when dealing with these maniacs and give them a dose of their own medicine, before the rats take over the place.
That may be the real Christian thing to do.
