The Lethal Injection, as the Organization of Death Penalty says “Is the
practice of killing a person using a lethal dose of drugs administered
intravenously”. Nowadays in the State of Texas they use this way of killing
inmates. David Gale, the main character of the movie “The life of David Gale” is
a well-known professor of philosophy and a capital punishment abolitionist at
Texas University. He is sent on Death Row convicted for the rape and murder of
his best friend, who was the leader of the local branch of Death Watch (an
organization campaigning against death penalty). Days before his execution, a
journalist is sent by the weekly news magazine to conduct David Gale´s final interview.
All along the interviews we can see flashbacks from the facts that had already
happened and it seems that David Gale is an innocent person who was going to be
punished. But finally, after his death and after the journalist proves the
innocence of David we realize that all of the crimes were right but saw it from
another perspective with the final idea of sending the message of what happens
if you kill an innocent person.
Firstly, among the movie, the Retributive Theory of Punishment says that
the punishment is justified because the criminal. Secondly, there is a constant
question of the brutality of taking the life of a human being in payment for another.
All we knew about David Gale is that he is the one accused for the crime until
the end of the movie. He is sent to prison because of it and sent to death. But
supposing he is the one who to blame, is this the only solution?
Once this type of policy appears we reproduce a cycle of killings where
there is one who is being killed by someone and that person is killed by the
authorities. So does it have an end? From my point of view, we can consider
this attitude as deterrent because to punish someone as an example to create
fear in other people of repeating the criminal action. Among in the movie, points
directly to the guilty person that provokes a crisis in the viewer’s conscience
that makes you consider whether really think someone who has killed deserves to
die executed or otherwise deserves to be punished for that.
In my opinion it is not convenient to kill someone who had already
killed because there is a no ending solution. A solution might be what the “Humanitarian Theory of Punishment:
rehabilitation” suggests: the criminals should be treated therapeutically,
there should be a way to teach the criminal and give it back to society like a “second
chance”. In addition to this, we should consider Lewis opinion that says that
when someone breaks the law he is deprived of his human rights. Instead of
applying justice and punishment, the cure should be treating the criminal as a
patient. The contrary for the deterrent way of looking, here you are being used
as a life example for others.
In addition, I also agree with the idea that maybe the one who is being
killed is innocent. Despite that, it´s better to kill an innocent person and
save another ten. It is doing something bad for the right. (The end justifies
the means). As Mills wrote, despite he was in favor of Capital Punishment, “if
by an error of justice an innocent person is put to death, the mistake can
never be corrected… all reparation from the wrong is impossible.” This fact within
the topic is important. The Justice has the fullest evidence of guilt before
the Death Row. If it is necessary it should go over all the evidence a thousand
times. All the contrary, is what had happened in the movie, the facts were not
checked and they decided to kill the “innocent man”.
To sum up, the movie “The life of David Gale” claims that capital
punishment should be abolished, and it does so on the basis of the Justice
System can always make mistakes and kill an innocent person and that maybe we
can try to use another way of punishment or treatment. Personally, I agree with
the idea that there is another solution and not to go directly to death row.
These people should receive treatment.
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