Argument Against The Death Penalty

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In 1992, 17 year old Johnny Frank Garrett was put to death for confessing to raping and murdering a 72-year old nun. A crime as heinous as this certainly deserves the death penalty as a punishment right? The only problem is that Garrett didn't do it. Garrett was in fact, a mentally ill man who suffered severe childhood trauma, significant brain damage and multiple personality disorder. His mental instability and repeated police interrogation are only things that caused him to confess to killing the nun. Shortly after the confession, a psychologist declared him mentally unfit to admit to such a thing, and Garrett would proclaim his innocence right up until he was executed by the state of Texas who had conveniently ignored the psychologist's declaration. Garrett went to his grave innocent and bitter at the world, illustrated by his last words: "I'd like to thank my family for loving me and taking care of me. And the rest of the world can kiss my everloving ass because I'm innocent." Garrett's last words were proven right twelve years later when new evidence surfaced thanks to the emergence of DNA testing. The real criminal was found to be Leoncio Perez Rueda, and it was proven once and for all that Garrett was innocent. Our justice system put a man they knew was mentally sick and unfit to speak for himself to death and in my opinion, there is no greater miscarriage of justice. The tragic story of Johnny Garrett is a great example of why we need to outlaw the death penalty immediately. As Americans we like to think that our justice system is infallible and will always give people a fair trial and the appropriate sentence if they are found guilty in that trial. The strange thing is that Rueda was not given the same punishment that Gar... ... middle of paper ... ... to correct something they did in the past makes no sense. Finally, ending someone’s life prematurely robs them of the opportunity to make up for their criminal past. There are probably many people who have been put to death who had the potential in them to follow in Greg Miller’s footsteps and become genuinely good people after they were released from prison. Works Cited: 1. ExecutedToday.com. Executedtoday, 11 Feb. 2012. Web. 11 Feb. 2014. . 2. Sidery, Sara “Ex-convict Turns Life Around, Helps Other Felons Find Jobs - WRCBtv.com | Ex-convict Turns Life Around, Helps Other Felons Find Jobs - WRCBtv.com | Chattanooga News, Weather & Sports. WRCBTV, 27 Nov. 2013. Web. 14 Feb. 2014.”

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