Two events today highlight the differences between the German and American systems of justice. In Virginia John Allen Muhammad, the "Washington Sniper", was executed by lethal injection after the US Supreme Court refused to hear his appeal. Deutsche Welle reports:
Muhammads Anwälte zeigten sich enttäuscht über die – wie sie formulierten - "Eile" bei der Vollstreckung des Todesurteils. Sie argumentierten, dass ihrem Mandanten nicht genug Zeit für die restlose Ausschöpfung aller Berufungsmittel eingeräumt worden sei. Außerdem sei nicht ausreichend berücksichtigt worden, dass Muhammad unter Paranoia und anderen mentalen Störungen gelitten habe. Der Verurteilte verzichtete darauf, vor der Hinrichtung eine letzte Erklärung abzugeben. Angehörige einiger Mordopfer verfolgten die Vollstreckung im Greensville-Gefängnis. (Muhammed's lawyers expressed disappointment concerning what they termed "the rush" to carry out the death penalty. They argued that their client did not have sufficient time to exhaust all of the appeal options. Beyond this the courts did not take into consideration the mental state of Muhammad, that he suffered from paranoia and other psychological disturbances. The condemned man refused to give a last statement. Family members of several of the murder victims were present at the execution in the Greensville prison.)
How long will the United States continue the barbaric practice of executing its citizens (and not just its citizens)? In my view, executing the perpetrator compounds the offense. The United States is among the top five nations in the world in terms of executions; we are in the company of such governments as China, Iran and Saudi Arabie. Abolition of the death penalty is a requirement for joining the European Union. West Germany abolished the death penalty in 1949, but the East German GDR continued executing citizens until 1981 (according to Todesstrafe.de).
Today also marked the sentencing in Dresden of the Russian-born Alexander Wiems, who was convicted of a horrific murder of an Egyptian woman and her unborn child. The New York Times reports
The German man who stabbed a pregnant Egyptian woman to death in a Dresden courtroom was found guilty on Wednesday and given a life sentence. The killing of the woman, Marwa al-Sherbini, a 31-year-old pharmacist, attracted worldwide attention and led to demonstrations in Egypt. The man, Alexander Wiens, 28, was convicted of killing Ms. Sherbini on July 1 in front of her 3-year-old son and her husband, whom the killer also stabbed as he tried to defend her. The Dresden court said that because of the seriousness of the crime, Mr. Wiens would not be eligible for early release, which in most cases is available after 15 years in Germany. Prosecutors accused the defendant of acting out of xenophobia. Mr. Wiens, a German citizen who was born in Russia, admitted to the stabbing but not to a racist motivation.
The swift trial and the harsh sentence should be viewed as a victory of the German justice system.
Comments