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Political conservatives are
beginning to realize that this whole seedy death affair has been run by
big government.
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ALMOST OVERNIGHT, public discourse about the death penalty has been
transformed. Public execution has become a political issue — and things
will never be the same. To those who have been seeking death penalty
reform, a window of opportunity may be opening. To liberals, whose concern
for the plight of the oppressed has fallen on deaf ears, a framework
within which narratives can be freely expressed and intelligently consumed
is under construction. The forgotten stories of eyewitnesses whose
testimony was long ago buried in county court files is being embraced by
nighttime news programmers.
And today, as
Gary Graham awaits execution on Texas’ death row — his conviction based on
the testimony of a single eyewitness — the death penalty has become an
issue in the presidential campaign.
THE POSSIBILITY OF
ERROR |
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Up to this point, the human factors that contribute to death penalty
errors have largely been hidden from public view. Perhaps this has been
the result of an honest belief on the part of most citizens that the
system is so flawless that mistakes of such magnitude could not possibly
be made. Perhaps it is because most citizens are apathetic when it comes
to accused murderers. Or, perhaps efforts to keep the inherent flaws in
the system hidden have been intentional and institutionalized by the
system. For whatever reason, hidden they have been, and the discourse
surrounding the death penalty traditionally has been desolate and
unobtrusive, the silence punctuated by the occasional pollster’s question
or emotional appeals from civil libertarians.
Outside circles of criminal justice elites, very little serious
discussion of death penalty issues and consequences has occurred. Within
the legal system, discourse on the death penalty has lacked depth and has
been nearly devoid of participation of influential voices.
QUESTIONS FROM CONSERVATIVES |
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To conservatives (sans Texas Gov. George W. Bush, as of this
writing), the discourse is enriched by the nearly explosive realization
that this whole seedy death affair has been run by big government — what
could be bigger than the criminal justice system? As such, it is subject
to all the criticism and debate applicable to other blundering
bureaucratic organizations. Even the most conservative critics, those
strongly in favor of the harshest of penalties, remain staunch in their
opposition to mistakes that cost innocent citizens their lives. In the
hierarchy of government faux pas, wrongful death is the cataclysm to end
all. The discourse teems with interests that bring varied perspective to
the table. Science brings forth the redemption of DNA. Even the religious
community, represented by the likes of Sister Helen Prejean, weighs in
about the grief of victims and offenders.
RENEWED SCRUTINY
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Although the political process in this country is far from faultless
and the influence of power carries inordinate weight as candidates are
crafted and cultivated, politics does have an uncanny ability to open
dialogue and promote free discourse.
Opinions on the death penalty before the politics took charge of the
commentary reflected only limited knowledge. This new discourse on the
risks and benefits of capital punishment may yield a similar range of
views in the end, but those views will have been arrived at with a
clearer, richer and ultimately, more democratic understanding.
Mary Ann Eastep
teaches criminal justice at the University of Central Florida.
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