# Dzhokhar Tsarnaev: Should and Will He Get the Death Penalty?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dzhokhar-tsarnaev-should-and-will-he-get-the-death-penalty/656384>\
**Category:** In My Humble Opinion\
**Created:** [April 22, 2013, 6:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dzhokhar-tsarnaev-should-and-will-he-get-the-death-penalty/656384 "2013-04-22T06:48:35Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 18\
**Page:** 5

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\
**Post date:** [April 24, 2013, 5:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dzhokhar-tsarnaev-should-and-will-he-get-the-death-penalty/656384/81 "2013-04-24T17:23:09Z")

</div>

> [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](#):
>
> IIRC, the only capital offence in English & Welsh law is treason.

Or being Scottish, right? 😉

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![EverwonderWhy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ee59a6/32.png) [@EverwonderWhy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EverwonderWhy)\
**Post date:** [April 24, 2013, 5:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dzhokhar-tsarnaev-should-and-will-he-get-the-death-penalty/656384/82 "2013-04-24T17:41:47Z")

</div>

I am opposed to the death penalty and cruel and unusual punishment - which includes sensory deprivation or years of solitary confinement.

I read somewhere that prosecutors are not likely to be interested in offering Dzhokhar Tsarnaev a deal that would take the death penalty off the table in exchange for his cooperation, due to the public outcry if he wasn’t executed. Not to mention, prosecutors likely have enough evidence that they don’t even need Dzhokhar Tsarnaev’s cooperation in order to secure a conviction.

So, I speculate Dzhokhar Tsarnaev is going to get the death penalty, even though I don’t think he (or any other convicted criminal) should.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\
**Post date:** [April 24, 2013, 5:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dzhokhar-tsarnaev-should-and-will-he-get-the-death-penalty/656384/83 "2013-04-24T17:53:04Z")

</div>

> [@EverwonderWhy](#):
>
> I am opposed to the death penalty and cruel and unusual punishment - which includes sensory deprivation or years of solitary confinement.
> 
> I read somewhere that prosecutors are not likely to be interested in offering Dzhokhar Tsarnaev a deal that would take the death penalty off the table in exchange for his cooperation, due to the public outcry if he wasn’t executed. Not to mention, prosecutors likely have enough evidence that they don’t even need Dzhokhar Tsarnaev’s cooperation in order to secure a conviction.
> 
> So, I speculate Dzhokhar Tsarnaev is going to get the death penalty, even though I don’t think he (or any other convicted criminal) should.

I think it will depend on how much they think he’s tied to other groups. If it was just him and his brother, possibly influenced by the mysterious “Misha”, then there isn’t much to trade for. If it turned out he was connected to other terror groups, then there would be reason to bargain.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\
**Post date:** [April 24, 2013, 5:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dzhokhar-tsarnaev-should-and-will-he-get-the-death-penalty/656384/84 "2013-04-24T17:56:20Z")

</div>

I doubt it’s the conviction they want his cooperation for. It’s ongoing anti-terrorism stuff.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\
**Post date:** [April 24, 2013, 5:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dzhokhar-tsarnaev-should-and-will-he-get-the-death-penalty/656384/85 "2013-04-24T17:56:27Z")

</div>

> [@EverwonderWhy](#):
>
> I read somewhere that prosecutors are not likely to be interested in offering Dzhokhar Tsarnaev a deal that would take the death penalty off the table in exchange for his cooperation, due to the public outcry if he wasn’t executed. Not to mention, prosecutors likely have enough evidence that they don’t even need Dzhokhar Tsarnaev’s cooperation in order to secure a conviction.

I agree. That’s especially true if he’s telling the truth when he says he and his brother acted alone. They don’t need his cooperation and he wouldn’t have anything significant to offer anyway.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\
**Post date:** [April 24, 2013, 6:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dzhokhar-tsarnaev-should-and-will-he-get-the-death-penalty/656384/86 "2013-04-24T18:40:25Z")

</div>

> [@Marley23](#):
>
> I agree. That’s especially true if he’s telling the truth when he says he and his brother acted alone. They don’t need his cooperation and he wouldn’t have anything significant to offer anyway.

I’m still not ready to accept “no ties to other terror groups”. Maybe it’s just a coincidence, but we just had a bomb at a major sporting event in the US by people with ties to the Caucasus region and we have a huge sporting event (winter Olympics) in the Caucasus region in less than a year. It would not surprise me at all if there were some ties to some Chechen separatist group or other.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![EverwonderWhy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ee59a6/32.png) [@EverwonderWhy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EverwonderWhy)\
**Post date:** [April 24, 2013, 6:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dzhokhar-tsarnaev-should-and-will-he-get-the-death-penalty/656384/87 "2013-04-24T18:47:22Z")

</div>

> [@John\_Mace](#):
>
> I think it will depend on how much they think he’s tied to other groups. If it was just him and his brother, possibly influenced by the mysterious “Misha”, then there isn’t much to trade for. If it turned out he was connected to other terror groups, then there would be reason to bargain.

Do you think the public would be okay with bargaining over the death penalty even if he had information about other terror groups? Genuine question.

Or rather, if Dzhokhar Tsarnaev actually does have connections to other terror groups (which does not seem the case at this point, but could evolve as the investigation develops) then classify him as an “enemy combatant” for intelligence gathering purposes?

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\
**Post date:** [April 24, 2013, 6:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dzhokhar-tsarnaev-should-and-will-he-get-the-death-penalty/656384/88 "2013-04-24T18:52:05Z")

</div>

> [@John\_Mace](#):
>
> I’m still not ready to accept “no ties to other terror groups”. Maybe it’s just a coincidence, but we just had a bomb at a major sporting event in the US by people with ties to the Caucasus region and we have a huge sporting event (winter Olympics) in the Caucasus region in less than a year. It would not surprise me at all if there were some ties to some Chechen separatist group or other.

I’m just trying to stay current here: he told the government they acted alone and so far they haven’t found evidence that contradicts that. There’s no reason to take it on faith, though.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Peter\_Morris](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/peter_morris/32/359_2.png) [@Peter\_Morris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peter_Morris)\
**Post date:** [April 24, 2013, 6:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dzhokhar-tsarnaev-should-and-will-he-get-the-death-penalty/656384/89 "2013-04-24T18:52:14Z")

</div>

> [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](#):
>
> \*IIRC, the only capital offence in English & Welsh law is treason.

No, there is no death penalty in the UK at all, under any circumstances.

> **[Capital punishment in the United Kingdom | Final abolition](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capital_punishment_in_the_UK#Final_abolition)**
>
> The Criminal Damage Act 1971 abolished the offence of arson in royal dockyards.
> The Armed Forces Act 1981 abolished the death penalty for the civilian offence of spying in navy ships or bases which had been created by the Naval Discipline Act 1957.
> Beheading was abolished as a method of execution for treason in 1973. Hanging, however, remained available until 30 September 1998 when, under a House of Lords amendment to the Crime and Disorder Act 1998, proposed by Lord Archer of Sandwell, the dea...

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![EverwonderWhy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ee59a6/32.png) [@EverwonderWhy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EverwonderWhy)\
**Post date:** [April 24, 2013, 6:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dzhokhar-tsarnaev-should-and-will-he-get-the-death-penalty/656384/90 "2013-04-24T18:54:46Z")

</div>

Which would potentially generate more outcry: Bargaining over the death penalty or declaring Tsarnaev an “enemy combatant?”

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\
**Post date:** [April 24, 2013, 8:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dzhokhar-tsarnaev-should-and-will-he-get-the-death-penalty/656384/91 "2013-04-24T20:26:49Z")

</div>

> [@EverwonderWhy](#):
>
> Do you think the public would be okay with bargaining over the death penalty even if he had information about other terror groups? Genuine question.

I honestly don’t know. I’m sure the GOP would try and politicize the shit out it if Obama did.

> [@](#):
>
> Or rather, if Dzhokhar Tsarnaev actually does have connections to other terror groups (which does not seem the case at this point, but could evolve as the investigation develops) then classify him as an “enemy combatant” for intelligence gathering purposes?

I think it’s too late for that. He’s in the criminal justice system, and I don’t think he can be legally extracted from there.

> [@Marley](#):
>
> I’m just trying to stay current here: he told the government they acted alone and so far they haven’t found evidence that contradicts that. There’s no reason to take it on faith, though.

Yes, but I think it’s way too early to presume we know the whole story. I’m not betting the farm on my hypothesis, but I think there is still a chance there is more to this than the press knows. It may be weeks or even months before we get a full picture of these guys.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\
**Post date:** [April 28, 2013, 8:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dzhokhar-tsarnaev-should-and-will-he-get-the-death-penalty/656384/92 "2013-04-28T20:08:56Z")

</div>

The death penalty will not do more to discourage this sort of thing than life without parole. Therefore, we should choose the least damaging option. I’m just unclear on which that is.

As for what will happen? I predict death penalty overturned by appeal, with a 30% chance that the guy will commit suicide or be killed by a Jack Ruby before it’s all over.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Lightnin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lightnin/32/180_2.png) [@Lightnin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lightnin)\
**Post date:** [April 28, 2013, 8:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dzhokhar-tsarnaev-should-and-will-he-get-the-death-penalty/656384/93 "2013-04-28T20:19:00Z")

</div>

Will the death penalty deter future bombers? Of course not. Nobody’s going to say, “I \*would \*blow up that sporting event, but if I’m caught, they’ll kill me…”

The only purpose in sentencing Tsarnaev to death would be for revenge- and we, as a society, shouldn’t use our justice system for revenge.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\
**Post date:** [April 28, 2013, 9:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dzhokhar-tsarnaev-should-and-will-he-get-the-death-penalty/656384/94 "2013-04-28T21:26:02Z")

</div>

> [@BigT](#):
>
> The death penalty will not do more to discourage this sort of thing than life without parole.

It hasn’t been successful deterring other kinds of murder, I don’t see why it would be uniquely successful against this kind of terrorism.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\
**Post date:** [April 28, 2013, 11:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dzhokhar-tsarnaev-should-and-will-he-get-the-death-penalty/656384/95 "2013-04-28T23:28:19Z")

</div>

> [@Peter\_Morris](#):
>
> No, there is no death penalty in the UK at all, under any circumstances.
> 
> [Capital punishment in the United Kingdom - Wikipedia](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capital_punishment_in_the_UK#Final_abolition)

Ah. I left in 1996 and missed all that. Thanks.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![flodnak](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/838e76/32.png) [@flodnak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/flodnak)\
**Post date:** [April 29, 2013, 11:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dzhokhar-tsarnaev-should-and-will-he-get-the-death-penalty/656384/96 "2013-04-29T11:39:05Z")

</div>

I am against the death penalty, so of course I don’t believe Tsarnaev should get it.

Will he? Very likely, I’m afraid. (I wouldn’t mind being proven wrong.)

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_other_waldo_pepper/32/12370_2.png) [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Other_Waldo_Pepper)\
**Post date:** [April 29, 2013, 12:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dzhokhar-tsarnaev-should-and-will-he-get-the-death-penalty/656384/97 "2013-04-29T12:19:32Z")

</div>

> [@Esco](#):
>
> Life in jail is a far worse punishment then DP

So to show the world how generous and merciful we can be, we should execute the guy?

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\
**Post date:** [April 29, 2013, 1:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dzhokhar-tsarnaev-should-and-will-he-get-the-death-penalty/656384/98 "2013-04-29T13:09:51Z")

</div>

> [@Esco](#):
>
> Life in jail is a far worse punishment then DP

So why aren’t all the lifers trying to get the DP? Why is it that DP people are trying for life in prison?

Of course this evil asshole deserves the death penalty. Whether he will get it is another question. Probably not.

[Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dzhokhar-tsarnaev-should-and-will-he-get-the-death-penalty/656384.md?page=4)