What Is The Significance Of George Smith's Loss Of Innocence In Criminal Justice

Although psychiatrist Dr. Jones concluded that Smith was mentally ill and therefore did not qualify for capital punishment, the M’Naghten Rule clearly states that if a person is aware of the wrongful nature of his act yet still carries it out, he is mentally competent and therefore should be legally held accountable. Perry clearly understood that he was breaking both moral and legal laws when fleeing from the crime scene so he should be punished accordingly. Besides, let us take a moment to consider the questionable accuracy of Dr. Jones’ report since it was compiled under such a short period of time. Also, the psychological analysis primarily relied on Smith’s anecdotes which we should note that Smith has had a history of dissembling innocence in order to gain the sympathy and pity of others (according to his sister Mrs. Barbara Johnson).
In Kansas, life imprisonment is not effective because it always has the possibility of parole. In fact, prisoners sentenced for life only serve, on average, less than fifteen years. If Smith were not executed, he would return to commit the same horrendous crimes, if not worse. His next victims may very well be you. How would you feel if you were the one who was helplessly bound and gagged? How would you feel if you were the one who hopelessly pleaded for your life? How would you feel if you were the one who was heartlessly slaughtered on that fateful night? Perry denied life to these innocent people so why should we be so generous to grant him