Swift Death Penalty Is a Deterrence
Regarding “Less Cruel?” (Newswatch, Jan. 1): I am not really bloodthirsty, but if we as a people are really serious about stemming crime, we should remember the purpose of meting out punishment.
I have felt and do still that the purpose is to deter and in some cases rehabilitate. In the first case, a speedy and really severe response is the answer. If, say, a conviction of selling drugs had a mandatory punishment of death and the same were carried out in a few instances, I feel quite sure the industry would abate quite suddenly.
By the same token, if rehabilitation is the aim, then jail is not the answer. As a matter of fact, jail is probably more cruel than the death penalty.
It’s really more than high time we stopped worrying about cruelty to those who flout our laws as well as common decency.
ALAN L. BLUM
Balboa Island
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