Indiana is moving toward its first execution since 2009. (Getty Images)
It’s been fifteen years since the state of Indiana violated the sixth commandment, “you shall not kill,” from Exodus 20:13. The translation of the original text to “you shall not murder” in the last century by many churches is not without controversy. Professor Wilma Ann Bailey of the Christian Theological Seminary devoted an entire book to the debate in 2005.
Either way, Indiana is scheduled to kill Joseph Corcoran on December 18th. His sentence for murdering four men in 1997 was upheld last week by the Indiana Supreme Court.
It’s a sad truth in a modern society that 60% of Americans support this barbaric practice, according to Pew Research. Their research shows minor ebbs and flows of support and opposition over time, which indicates to me that some dramatic change in the national perspective on the matter is unlikely anytime soon.
Twenty-two states use the death penalty as a legal criminal sentence, according to the Death Penalty Information Center. Take a look at that map of states. Now, take a look at the state map from The Guttmacher Institute showing the new restrictive laws on abortion access. It’s not a perfect match, but it’s close. Life is so precious in these states that an embryo is worth statutorily protecting, to the detriment of a woman. In primarily the same places, an adult can be destroyed, specifically by the state’s government, because the people of that state are mad at them.
Yes, the reasons states and the federal government sentence people to death is almost always officially for murder, but not every murder, only the really bad ones. I often wonder why this killing qualifies and that one doesn’t, even though deep down I know the answer. Some horrific killing happened in a state and the people responded angrily by adding that type of act to the list of acts worthy of a death sentence. The anger is the key.
Gauging sentiment
I went to social media over the weekend to ask what people thought about the practice, and the second response nailed the sentiment I expected. I briefly explained Corcoran’s crime and the debate about his mental fitness, and the responder wrote: “I do have feelings about the mental health disorders, but I may feel differently if it were my family he killed.”
She’s telling me that “justice,” in her view, changes based on her feelings. I imagine that sentiment is common. I also cannot state how deeply I disagree with that being a consideration at all, again, in a modern society.
The Indiana Capital Chronicle reported last week that Indiana State Rep. Bob Morris sent a letter to Gov. Eric Holcomb requesting that he block the execution. He wrote, “The recent Supreme Court decision to return the matter of abortion to each state and Indiana’s Special Session thereafter resulted in tremendous upheaval in my heart regarding the value of every human life…” This is heartening, not because of his conclusion, but because of his process.
What is disheartening, however, is the apparent permission structure that is growing to approve of other killings.
UnitedHealthcare CEO, Brian Thompson, was gunned down outside a hotel in New York on Wednesday. It was an assassination that continues to be a mystery in two ways. First, the killer was at large for days even though the shooting was caught on camera, along with other video documentation of his movements that day. Second, the motive is unknown.
Any murder is disturbing, but the reaction to this one is morbidly shameful.
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For example, Saturday Night Live’s Colin Jost addressed on Weekend Update over the weekend: “The manhunt continues for the assassin who gunned down the CEO of UnitedHealthcare on Wednesday, and it really says something about America that a guy was murdered in cold blood and the two main reactions were, ‘Yeah, well healthcare stinks!’ And also, ‘Girl, that shooter hot.’”
Yes, health care stinks for a long list of reasons. Also yes, UnitedHealthcare is the health insurer that is most expert at denying claims and refusing care options. But does that justify the celebration of Thompson’s killing? Not to me it doesn’t.
Americans are mad at him though. Most Americans didn’t know who he was before last week, but it didn’t take long for that to evolve into a “he had it comin’” sort of response by many.
I wish we could get off this merry-go-round. The value of the government executing people has always been negligible. Once we remove the function of it serving as revenge, the value drops to lower than zero, given the expense of the act.
Justice requires objectivity, or as the adage goes, blindness. The “eye for an eye” type we’re living with now is a relic of the past.
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