"The Execution" was an informative documentary on the death penalty, and it focused on two men in particular. Clifford Boggess was a man who was executed for murdering two old men in cold blood. His sentence of death was proper punishment. Although I do think that Boggess changed as a man when he was on death row, he should still have been sent to die. Even though he changed and may have been a good man in the end, it doesn't change what he had done. If the court system would let him go off of death row that would send a poor message to the public that they are willing to give murderers a second chance, not to mention the family of the victim was looking forward to the closure. I do think that he believed he was going to heaven, and hence that's the reason he was able to accept the penalty for his crimes. I think that's irrelevant though because those are his internal thoughts. It's great that he believes that but who really knows what's going to happen. Boggess was a changed person but that doesn't mean he should have his sentence changed. If he was truly remorseful for the murders of his victims he should feel obligated to die in order to compensate for pain he caused so many people.
Leslie Gosch is a prime example of the glitches in the death penalty system. Anybody who is teased with their death is cruel and unusual punishment. Although I do believe that the death penalty is an acceptable form of punishment, the process of them dying should be quick and not dragged out. This case has changed my understanding of capital punishment, although it hasn't changed my core belief about it. I am a lot more informed about the effects that the death penalty has. After learning more and more about the death penalty I actually have a stronger belief in keeping it in place.
