In capital murder trials that both ended last month, Dexter Lewis, left, and James Holmes were each given sentences of life without parole. Lewis killed five people at Fero’s bar in Denver on Oct. 17, 2012; Holmes killed 12 people and injured 70 others at an Aurora movie theater on July 20, 2012. (The Denver Post)
Re: “After Aurora and Denver verdicts, Colorado mulls death penalty again,” Sept. 6 news story.
I want to thank The Denver Post for continuing the conversations on the death penalty in Colorado with the massive write-up last weekend. I read through all the articles and opinion pieces. I was struck by one particular quote by Sam Kamin, which I think nicely sums up the current state of capital punishment in Colorado: “Right now, we have an expensive system that doesn’t execute anyone.”
The only thing he left out is that it is incredibly unlikely to change. There is really no way to “fix” the death penalty. Every state that has tried has made the appeals process longer and more expensive.
The death penalty is broken beyond repair and I think itap time for it to go.
Walter E. Barrett, Denver
This letter was published in the Sept. 13 edition.Re: “Renewed debate on death penalty,” Sept. 6 editorial.
The Denver Postap editorial did not convince me the death penalty law is invalid and “haphazard.” Just because different juries decide similar cases differently does not make the law invalid. Each jury is a separate group of 12 people brought together to try a fellow citizen. Facts are different, prosecutors are different, defense attorneys are different, and juries are different. These variables can combine to produce varying results.
And just because a politician like Gov. John Hickenlooper can wimp out and decide not to carry out the verdict of the court doesn’t make the law bad, either. Leave the law alone.
Stephan Frank, Arvada
This letter was published in the Sept. 13 edition.If there is a movement to repeal the death penalty, we strongly encourage two exceptions: law enforcement officers and correctional officers.
We both have run Colorado’s prison system. Some of our inmates are already in for life and there has to be a meaningful penalty for killing one of our guards. Clearly the same applies to law enforcement. What will prevent a repeat offender from shooting it out with law enforcement?
We may be in favor or against the death penalty, but we greatly respect those who put their lives on the line to protect the public. There has to be something to hold over the heads of those who would harm them.
Richard D. Lamm, Denver
Bill Owens, Littleton
Richard D. Lamm was governor of Colorado from 1975-87.
Bill Owens was governor from 1999-2007.
Re: “The state of the death penalty,” Sept. 6 Perspective feature.
One of the arguments often made against the death penalty puzzles me. Several of the individuals who wrote in last Sunday’s Perspective mentioned it, including the governor. That argument is: It costs the taxpayers millions and millions of dollars to prosecute a capital case.
Almost all defendants charged with capital murder are represented by the public defender’s office. The lawyers from that office are paid by the taxpayers to represent indigent persons accused of crimes, be they capital murder or burglary. They are not hired specifically for a capital case — they are hired to do the work of the public defender’s office. Their participation in a capital case costs the taxpayers nothing extra because they are already on the job.
Admittedly there are some expenses attributable to a capital case such as expert witnesses’ fees, police overtime for courthouse security, and the cost of transcripts for appeal. However, these expenditures are relatively minor and certainly don’t amount to “millions and millions” of dollars.
What am I missing?
Tom Barton, Colorado Springs
This letter was published in the Sept. 13 edition.Re: “The death penalty and two Colorado murder trials,” Sept. 6 letters to the editor.
I’m no attorney, but I plainly recognized two glaring errors in attorney Phil Cherner’s letter.
1. Cherner writes that the death penalty has “no deterrent effect on criminal behavior.” The death penalty clearly eliminates repeated offenses by the condemned person, so it is a deterrent to at least one criminal.
2. Cherner writes, “The deliberate killing of a person by the government is never an appropriate form of justice in a nation that respects the value of human life.” This nation does not respect the value of human life; witness the killing of millions in the womb.
Itap time for Colorado to utilize the death penalty as our law states it can.
Jim Coleman, Berthoud
This letter was published in the Sept. 13 edition.
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