No. I don’t see why that would be an issue, mind, since it won’t bring Holly and Jessica back to life.
No, England does not have capital punishment.
The capital punishment debate is a whole different argument for a different forum.
The numbers say that murder rates actually DECREASE in the absence of capital punishment. We have plenty of theories abot why that’s the case, but not much empirical proof - it’s just a pattern which seems to be consistent in those countries which have abolished capital punishment over the last 50 years.
Right now I’ve got to get some sleep, but I’d be glad to debate the issue tomorrow.
Latest overnight reports fromt he US are coming in as I type. I’m too tired to seek out the details righ now, but I suspect that I might want to comment about the teenagers who killed their mother some time tomorrow.
Okay, what about them? I can’t find a thing.
What about who?
Jojo, the police have told Milly’s family that she is more than likely dead. so why is it not a murder enquiry?
Sorry; I meant the teenagers accused of killing their mother, to whom reprise referred.
Ah, okay. Thanks.
Personally, I think it’s a good thing that the media is so frenzied in stranger abduction cases. The worst thing that can be done is nothing. Silence is an criminal’s friend.
Most states in the U.S. are introducing legislation to do a media blitz immediately following a stranger abduction. The police send out bulletins to radio and t.v. stations in the whole state with a description of the missing child(ren), the abductor’s car (if available), etc. The intention, of course, is to use the eyes and ears of the entire state to search for the missing child and to let them be alert for anything amiss or unusual in the time immediately preceding and immediately following the bulletin. Did Mr. Jones stuff something in his trunk? Did you see a strange car driving slowly through the kidnapped child’s neighborhood?
It also puts enormous pressure on the abductor. And that is a good thing because if the child isn’t returned immediately, then chances are extremely high that the child won’t return at all. You have to get to him before he kills them.
The media blitz was successful in one recent case in Texas, I believe. That case was an infant, but it might also be more important in the abductions of older children. Think about it. If a child is old enough to identify the abductor (e.g. “It was the caretaker at our school!”), then the abductor will feel compelled to kill them because he knows that if he does they will tell the police and he’ll be caught. However, if the whole community is “working on the case” and he feels that someone might have seen him take the girls, he just might release them unharmed in order to avoid a murder charge. (Which, in the U.S. states can mean the difference between life in prison and death. )
In any event, my prayers are with the families of these girls. What a horror for them.
No, but some people are baying for blood and are campaigning to bring it back on the basis of this case. Which, IMHO, is stupid. I’ve said here before that I’m strongly against capital punishment for the simple fact that a lifetime in jail is a much harsher punishment than a quick, merciful, painless death.
This is a great use of the media as a tool of social information.
However, when the media decamp en masse to the town where the children were from, start interviewing everyone in the town, put up million pound rewards for information that leads to people coming in to “scavenger hunt” for clues, and thus hampering the police investigation, it is an abuse of the media’s role.
The media started a backlash against the police in this force, claiming they weren’t doing enough, that they were wasting time, that the investigation was misdirected etc.
In fact, it took the families to come out and say they supported the police to end the media barage.
The idiotic baying mobs that gather outside the courts in these cases disgust me-what part of ‘innocent until proven guilty’ don’t they understand? Or the fact that it is for a jury who have heard all the evidence to decide if someone is guilty or not-not a bunch of hatetwisted faced morons who think it edifying to act like a pack of rabid wolverines with pepper suppositries up their collective arse whenever a case like this happens who know- and let’s not be coy about this, sod all! - (oh bovine dullard idiot woman you are like being so original when you run up and bang on the police van!! ooo yes and lets yell “hang the bitch!” at someone who hasn’t even been charged with murder and who may or may not have had anything to do with it, :rolleyes: )
And of course they always have thier kids there in the pushchairs and all-according to reports they were terrified and crying. This is bloody child abuse! (they are too stupid to see the irony I suspect) And what a delightful example these people are setting!
I always wish the police would arrest them. Morons the lot of them.
What you refer to is the Amber Alert.
And I quote "The AMBER Plan was created in 1996 as a powerful legacy to 9-year-old Amber Hagerman, a bright little girl who was kidnapped and brutally murdered while riding her bicycle in Arlington, Texas. "
It has now been used in Texas and California that I know of. I the case of the California abductions the culprit was caught in just hours after the abduction, if I remember the news correctly.
Glad and Sad to know this was created just a few miles from where I live.
One of the points which came up in an item I saw on the Amber alert, was that the killing of abductees tends to occur within 3 hours of the abduction, hence the need for speed.
There are growing concerns with the press coverage. The UK has quite strict laws on what can and cannot be reported with regard to a criminal case.
New warning on Soham coverage
Soham murders: Police fear media stories could stop trial
Here’s a article about 'Rampton Hospital where Huntley is being kept.
The level or fear and worry that this case has thrown up are very noticeable even here in Ireland. Last night when walking home I walked by a father and daughter. The daughter in a pram smiled and waved at me. I’ve smiled and waved back and got a look that would kill from the father. It’s sad but understandable I suppose.
The press coverage of this just sickens me. I’d love to see how the authorities are going to set about picking even a remotely impartial jury after nearly a month of press headlines like ‘Rot in Hell’ (Courtesy of the Daily Express).
Do any legal eagles here know if the defence would be able to move for dismissal based on this coverage?