Democrats have been seeking to abolish the death penalty, while some Republicans in the Texas Legislature have pushed for a moratorium to study the implementation of the punishment.
Yesterday, we asked readers what they thought Texas should do…
Do you want to participate in our weekly surveys?
Subscribe to the Texas Minute!
Here is a sampling of the comments we received from our readers after they voted in the survey.
“When heinous crimes involving death are NOT committed, then perhaps the death penalty won’t be needed.” – Barbara Nash
“Keep the death penalty, but reduce the time between sentencing and carrying out the punishment.” – Michael Conway
“Keeping the death penalty allows for the possibility of removing a criminal from society permanently…instead of housing, feeding, and supporting a criminal (at taxpayer expense!) for years upon years in jail.” – Dana Krasinski
“Police, Prosecutors and Judges CANNOT BE TRUSTED.” – Jack Stinnett
“The death penalty should be strengthened to include crimes against children, crimes committed by illegal aliens with repeat histories of violence, and the crime of Treason.” – Mary Roan
“The punishment needs to equal the crime; otherwise, what’s the point of laws? We want to deter others from lawless activity, and fear of death is a pretty good deterrent.” – Susan Valliant
“Keep the Death Penalty intact, but we need to change from the ‘good-bye juice’ that is hard to obtain, either back to hanging, firing squad, electrocution, or the newer tech method of Nitrogen hypoxia.” – Thomas Bazan
“If the state bans abortion, then it must ban the death penalty. It just doesn’t work that it’s okay to allow SOME legal killing. End the death penalty.” – Michelle Lantz
“The right of any free society to protect its citizens is as basic to survival as having the means to do so! Guns? Yes! Death penalty? Absolutely!” – Sara Heizer
“I used to be a supporter of the death penalty, and I definitely agree some people deserve to die for some of the horrible things they do, but after all the law-fare that we’ve seen aimed at the January 6 citizens and President Trump, it’s not a power I want to give government. Further, given the incompetence, lack of questioning, reasoning, and corruption in our scientific and medical community, I no longer trust forensic testing.” – Susan Kochevar
“Keeping it is crucial to having a civil society.” – Frida Motamedi
“The death penalty has its place, but I believe all cases should be reviewed and reversed if there is any question about guilt.” – David Perry
“The death penalty is about the only deterrent we have to threaten a hardened criminal. Some people say two wrongs don’t make a right, but these criminals certainly weren’t concerned about someone else’s life! I don’t want my tax dollars to feed and house a criminal for 30 years!” – Priscilla Love
“Death is way too easy. They should have to live out their miserable lives locked up like the animals they are. I can’t reconcile being against abortion and pro-death penalty.” – Karen Breazeale
“If there is no punishment for committing a crime, crime will be committed. While the death penalty is reserved for the most heinous crimes, it also acts as a deterrent. One needs only to look at the rise in crime that has resulted due to cash-less bail. If there is no punishment for stealing $900 worth of items, more theft will occur.” – Steve Sullivan
“If one studies the history, the unequal application, or the perceived ‘benefits’ of the death penalty, one is dismayed that justifications beyond revenge are difficult to find; seemingly, there is no rational basis for it.” – Jim Pikl
“The problem with the current law is that taxpayers foot the bill to support criminals for 20-30 years before justice. Once someone is given the death penalty, they should be moved into a separate system where appeals and such should be limited to 5 years. CSI & law enforcement technology has vastly improved to the point where guilt or innocence is close to 100%.” – Steve Gandy
“The moral decline of modern society is due to the lack of respect for authority and the absence of deterrence… a society without repercussion for lawlessness and evil is doomed.” – John Morrison
“I believe we not only need to keep the death penalty, but it should be used more often as we should not have to use our tax dollars to support those convicted of heinous crimes, especially with the huge influx of criminals coming across our border illegally.” – Bernadine Pearce
“There are some crimes that are just too heinous to even consider anything but the death penalty. We all have free will—what we as individuals do with free will is a judgment in everyday life. Choose good, not evil.” –Elizabeth Day
