“If we really are a country that would rather kill potentially innocent people than accept the reality of doubt, I’m not sure we have much hope left."
— Emily Hauser for The Atlantic, Troy Davis and the Reality of Doubt
I hadn't heard Troy Davis' name before last week, when he was executed in the US state of Georgia for a murder he may not have committed. "Potentially innocent" is the term that has been repeated over and over in the media and it's concerning not because anybody knows for sure whether or not Troy Davis is a murderer but because there is, undeniably, doubt as to his guilt. And yet, he was locked in jail for over 20 years, denied multiple appeals, and sentenced to death. Where has it all gone wrong?
The issue is not confined to the American legal system. The Australian system is just as flawed although, since we abolished the death penalty, our mistakes don't have the same tragic finality. Just look at the cases of John Button, Andrew Mallard and Graham Stafford, to name a few.
Why do these miscarriages of justice occur? I think it's partly the fault of the system, and partly the fault of the people who participate within it. Particularly their reluctance to accept that truth is relative. Unless we were there, unless we saw it happen first-hand, we never know for sure (and even then, memories morph and lapse with time and prodding). I have no doubt that the people who sent Troy Davis to prison believed that he was guilty. The same applies for those who decided the fates of Button, Mallard and Stafford. But their perception was narrowed by their biases, and their desire for certainty.
Certainty feels comforting, and stabilising. But it's a dangerous end to seek, because it's too tempting to settle for an answer that seems to fit, and use assumption and imagination to fill in the rest. It's the truth we need to pursue, when people's lives are at stake. We have to find the humility to admit that we don't have all the answers. The open-mindedness to embrace and explore uncertainty. And the courage to accept the reality of doubt.
Both USA and Australia employ an adversarial-style legal system. Two sides, pitted against each other. And it's often those who fight the hardest, rather than who speak the truth, who are triumphant. Yet we are all on the same side. We all want justice. We all want bad deeds punished, fairly, and victims vindicated. As the t-shirt says, "I am Troy Davis". We are all Troy Davis. And I truly believe that when we fight for justice for him and others like him, we are also fighting for ourselves.
Both USA and Australia employ an adversarial-style legal system. Two sides, pitted against each other. And it's often those who fight the hardest, rather than who speak the truth, who are triumphant. Yet we are all on the same side. We all want justice. We all want bad deeds punished, fairly, and victims vindicated. As the t-shirt says, "I am Troy Davis". We are all Troy Davis. And I truly believe that when we fight for justice for him and others like him, we are also fighting for ourselves.
“Never, never be afraid to do what’s right, especially if the well-being of a person or animal is at stake. Society’s punishments are small compared to the wounds we inflict on our soul when we look the other way."
— Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
2 comments:
I really hate the death penalty. Especially when it really just boils down to he who has the better lawyer. The amount of minors in the U.S. that are prosecuted for murder, and sentenced to life, life without parole, or the death penalty, is insane and saddening. I certainly wouldn't wished to be judged on any of the mistakes I made prior to the age of 18, and yes, although they didn't result in anyone's death, I am extremely lucky and have had many gifts in life that a sad majority are not privy to.
I wish that mercy and compassion were more common attributes in the justice system. Whenever I hear about manslaughter perpetrators being sentenced to life imprisonment, i am reminded of the mother of a 4 year old boy from New Zealand, who didn't wish the driver of the car that killed her son to go to jail. Article is here: http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10661983
The mercy and wisdom shown by this woman is incalculable. I wish that a lot more people could understand how rehabilitation is a possibility for so many people, and how many lives could be saved by rehabilitating prisoners instead of sentencing them to die. So many cases are grey, without hard evidence, and many people are sentenced to death in the United States simply because they have a poor lawyer. It astounds me so much that a government that obviously condemns the death of a person so strongly, is willing to commit so many deaths in the name of 'justice'.
You shed new light on a familiar situation, and I love hearing your spin on it. =)
Thanks Jayme.
I read that article too, it is so touching. Forgiveness is more powerful than anger and resentment, because forgiveness can set you free.
Of course forgiveness can have the practical implications of endangering us (figuratively and literally), which is where the tension arises.
Fear holds us back but it also protects us. It's the innocent victims of fear that break my heart, in a helpless sort of way, because it's an endless and well-meaning form of despotism.
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