Saturday, October 6, 2012

The Propositions: Death Penalty and Human Trafficking

This year's propositions in California include some interesting crime and punishment issues.

Proposition 34
Proposition 34 would repeal the death penalty in California and replaces it with life in prison without parole.   It would apply retroactively to existing death penalty cases.  The essential question here is, does the death penalty work as a deterrent to crime?  Arguments in favor of Prop 34 include the fact that innocent people will no longer get accidentally killed in the death chamber and that the costs of taking a death penalty case to court are high.  Opponents of the measure argue that the punishment needs to fit the crime and that it costs $50,000 a year to keep criminals in jail.

Would you vote yes or no on Proposition 34 and why?

Link to Proposition 34

Proposition 35
Prop 35 would increase prison sentences and fines for human trafficking convictions from five years to 15 years to life and adds fines of up to $1.5 million.  It would also register human traffickers as sex offenders.  Supporters argue that we need stronger laws to crack down on human trafficking while opponents say it is a violation of privacy and is an example of big government and is expensive to enforce.

Would you vote yes or no on proposition 35 and why?

Link to Prop 35


8 comments:

  1. I do not support prop 34. I believe that mass murders should have the death penalty. Giving them life without parole is a dumb punishment. Giving someone the death penalty takes YEARS. So technically the death penalty is life without parole. People can live 20 to 30 years before getting put to death. In Texas they have an express lane pretty much, the death penalty is enacted quickly. As for putting the wrong person in jail, the courts should do there part in putting the CORRECT person in jail.

    Prop 35 is something I agree.with 100%. Sex and drug trafficking is a major problem in the u.s. everyone has seen the movie Taken. Their is no real life Liam Neeson to crack down on the bad guys in The trafficking world. They deserve life in prison and need the consequence of registering on the sexoffender list. People around them have a right to know.

    -Delainey Fontana

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  2. I agree with Delainey. Death Penalty should be allowed. If you killed someone you deserve to die too. plain and simple to me. plus it does save the money and helps keep over populated prisons under control. I think its only fair because if your in prison you still watch tv and see your family/friends write to them ect. but the innocent person who was killed will never see their family again. why should the murder? i know its rare but there's always that chance of them breaking out escaping or bribing their way out. over all they should punish high risk criminals with death.


    Also Prop 35 seriously it's a privacy issue?You never know your neighbors- and parents have a right to protect their families. if someone could be a potential risk parents should know so they can warn their kids and inform them. you violated someone else privacy by being a human trafficker what right do you have to have privacy now? i think they should be listed along with sex offenders its just as serious.

    -Mariah B.

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  3. I agree with Delainey. Death Penalty should be allowed. If you killed someone you deserve to die too. plain and simple to me. plus it does save the money and helps keep over populated prisons under control. I think its only fair because if your in prison you still watch tv and see your family/friends write to them ect. but the innocent person who was killed will never see their family again. why should the murder? i know its rare but there's always that chance of them breaking out escaping or bribing their way out. over all they should punish high risk criminals with death.


    Also Prop 35 seriously it's a privacy issue?You never know your neighbors- and parents have a right to protect their families. if someone could be a potential risk parents should know so they can warn their kids and inform them. you violated someone else privacy by being a human trafficker what right do you have to have privacy now? i think they should be listed along with sex offenders its just as serious.

    -Mariah B.

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  4. In my opinion i think that nobody should decided if some one has to die or not. Wouldn't we be equally guilty as a murderer because we both planed to take away somebody's life even though they are guilty and that is why i would vote yes on prop 34.
    I would also vote yes on prop 35 because human traffickers are also sex offender some abuse of people and force them into prostitution rings or use them as work slaves.Those people are sick and i strongly believe they should be marked as sex offenders.


    Ezri Loy

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  5. I would vote yes on prop 34 since it would lower the spending of executions and spend less money on prison funds and i believe that executing someone is giving them an easy way out instead of letting the prisoner rot for the rest of his life. I would vote yes on prop. 35 since human trafficking should not be ignored at all since there are people out there being used for a sick type of entertainment.

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  6. I would vote YES on both of these propositions, as I hope most Americans will on November 6th.
    The death penalty is an extreme form of punishment. Not only does it cease suffering as Christian pointed out, it also has the potential to cease the lives of innocent people who had been charged and sentenced. In the United States, alone, over 100 people have been executed then later exonerated. Our law enforcement system is flawed, making the death penalty a dangerous gamble, as the people being executed may be innocent. That low chance is too much to take.
    As for human trafficking, there is no reason why this crime should not get more than 10 years in prison. By trafficking people in the United States, you are taking away their Constitutional right to freedom. Traffickers should register as sex offenders, as they often direct the kidnapped people to become sex slaves. In my personal opinion, the sentence for human trafficking should be more strict.

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  7. Yes on Prop 34 because it will save our state a millions of dollars and it is my personal belief that the death penalty is wrong. There are those proven innocent after thay have been executed.

    Yes on Prop 35 because those involved in human trafficking deserve these stronger laws to be implemented on them. Although there is a fiscal impact, it is worth it to insure our safety from them.

    -Mariah Franco

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  8. I do not support proposition 34 because I believe that individuals who murder another person should recieve the same punishment. If the death sentence was to vanish, I believe that crime rates would increase because people would not be so worried about the result. Knowing that the death sentence would not be an option, I believe people would think they could murder another person and get away with their life. I do support propsition 35 because I believe it is extremely wrong to make business off of another person's body. Human traffiking is another form of kidnapping and prostitution. The unhealthy life styles the victims have to live are not anything anyone deserves. I believe that the people who encourage human traffiking should have severe punishments for letting other innocent people be used and abused by other people. There should be an end to human traffiking.
    Danielle Hazlett

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