Texas inmate kills himself hours before execution

[buckthesystem]

His body did belong to the state and he had to pay the price. But lets not forget his victims family and also his family in prayer (his family is hurting-and it is in no way their fault for what he did).

What "his body did belong to the state"?????

Are you serious?

Are you saying that as he was an alleged criminal he paid a price to the state by forfeiting his body? Or everybody's body belongs to the state?

Gee, I always thought our bodies belonged to God alone.

[buckthesystem]

I for one, think no one should spend life in prison, it costs us too much money to support the criminal. If someone was convicted of a horrendous crime, rape, murder etc. death seems to be a perfectly justified punishment. People that say the death penalty is ungodly, don't know God very well. He killed people for lying. So, petty criminals should face time in jail, violent criminals should face a lot of time in jail and murderers, rapists and pedophiles should be executed immediately following their conviction.

What about incompetence, "getting it wrong" and plain "malicious prosecution" by government departments, the justice department etc?

Under that theory a lot of innocent people would be killed by the state.

[buckthesystem]

Quote, Rustyangel: "So your answer to this would be what? I agree that the system is flawed but if we used the death penalty as it should be used maybe the crime rate would drop".

No, absolutely not! I totally, 100%, disagree with the death penalty. The Bible states clearly "Thou shalt not kill" and we have to take that seriously. It doesn't say "thou shalt not kill - unless, of course, you are a government employee carrying out 'the law'". The law of man does not supercede the law of God.

God only has the right to judge.

Another reason for there being no death penalty is the fact that incompetence, "getting it wrong" and plain "malicious prosecution" is so rife in any government's justice department.

Sorry but your wrong. I will look up the scripture and get back to this. I believe it's in the old testament, but basically it says. If you take a life your life may be required. I will look it up or maybe someone else knows where it is.

So you're deifying the state and putting them on the same level as God?

[Guest LadyC]

just curious, because i seem to have missed something. how on earth did rusty's reference to scripture deify the state?

God instituted the death penalty. He is the same today as He was from the beginning. OT and NT allowed for the execution of criminals. that's not just 'interpretational', that's plain scriptural. there's lots of things in scripture that don't sit well with some individuals, that's nothing new either. some people don't believe God was serious when it came to adultry, or to sex before marriage, or homosexuality, or selling things in a church environment, or that He is not the one who desires that anyone should perish, or that He will really send people to hell because of this or that. whatever is not politically correct, people tend to dismiss as a 'misinterpretation'. but ya know what? if God said it, i have no reason to doubt His word. God told us as individuals we are not to seek revenge, we are not to kill, etc. that was the same in both testaments. BUT, in both testaments the authority to carry out penalties for crimes was given to the rulers of the day. like it or not, that's just the way God saw it. i'm sure on the day of judgement, He will have a lot of people saying "i didn't think you meant it!"

[Kabowd]

Buck, let's not start with the claims that multiple innocent people are being , have been or will be executed. With the advances in DNA technology, most people who are in fact innocent, are able to have their cases re-examined and convictions overturned. The justice system has flaws, no doubt. But to assert or imply that people are routinely misjudged and/or routinely executed for crimes they did not commit is verifiably false.

[buckthesystem]

Buck, let's not start with the claims that multiple innocent people are being , have been or will be executed. With the advances in DNA technology, most people who are in fact innocent, are able to have their cases re-examined and convictions overturned. The justice system has flaws, no doubt. But to assert or imply that people are routinely misjudged and/or routinely executed for crimes they did not commit is verifiably false.

Kabowd, I must apologise, I didn't mean that "multiple innocent people" are being convicted all the time. I just meant that it does happen for varying reasons. Even if it happens (say) 10 times a year, it still means that SOME innocent people have been killed by the state.

As for your "advances in DNA technology", you must realise that "DNA technology" is open to abuse in itself and I can think of at least one recent case where it was used to wrongly convict somebody. DNA evidence is the easiest thing in the world to plant. DNA technology is a very dangerous tool in the hands of the incompetent or the malicious. Obviously I can't speak for the American justice department, but our justice dep't is just about synonymous with incompetence and perniciousness.

Also if someone did "have their case re-examined and convictions overturned" but they had been executed, it would be a bit pointless, wouldn't it?

[buckthesystem]

just curious, because i seem to have missed something. how on earth did rusty's reference to scripture deify the state?

God instituted the death penalty. He is the same today as He was from the beginning. OT and NT allowed for the execution of criminals. that's not just 'interpretational', that's plain scriptural. there's lots of things in scripture that don't sit well with some individuals, that's nothing new either. some people don't believe God was serious when it came to adultry, or to sex before marriage, or homosexuality, or selling things in a church environment, or that He is not the one who desires that anyone should perish, or that He will really send people to hell because of this or that. whatever is not politically correct, people tend to dismiss as a 'misinterpretation'. but ya know what? if God said it, i have no reason to doubt His word. God told us as individuals we are not to seek revenge, we are not to kill, etc. that was the same in both testaments. BUT, in both testaments the authority to carry out penalties for crimes was given to the rulers of the day. like it or not, that's just the way God saw it. i'm sure on the day of judgement, He will have a lot of people saying "i didn't think you meant it!"

Another apology. Sorry, I guess I got the wrong person. I didn't mean to imply that Rusty had defied the state, I mean that it seemed to be deifying the state to say that God had handed power over life and death to the state - as some of you are saying.

I still think that we should let God do the judging and not presume to do it on his behalf. I think the state has a cheek to assume that they should be alongside God in power, and people are really stupid to give them that same power.

[Guest LadyC]

God gave that authority to the government. to the rulers. you don't have to like it, but it's scriptural. it is not deifying the state on anyone's part to acknowledge the authority that God has granted them.

[Candi770]

His body did belong to the state and he had to pay the price. But lets not forget his victims family and also his family in prayer (his family is hurting-and it is in no way their fault for what he did).

What "his body did belong to the state"?????

Are you serious?

Are you saying that as he was an alleged criminal he paid a price to the state by forfeiting his body? Or everybody's body belongs to the state?

Gee, I always thought our bodies belonged to God alone.

His heart may or may not have belonged to the Lord, but because of his actions in his body that he lived in-he had to pay the cost for his crimes in that body=thus the state, was carrying out the punishment in that body=they housed it in their prison. His body was held captive or was in a since theirs for what he did.

[Candi770]

No one is blaming his family for his actions. They are victims of his crimes too.

I realize that but, I speak from one who has been there.

These guys in prison still need Jesus and Jesus would be just as quick to reach them as he would be to one who has never commited a crime like this.

candi