Quote:
Originally Posted by Mathgod
I don't have an MD nor a JD. Neither of those are a prerequisite to having common sense. What we have here is a situation where a person whose mental illness caused him to kill an innocent person in a brutal, excruciating manner. The experts have deemed him to be NCR, thus he is NCR. My question is how can we be absolutely sure that, if left unsupervised, he won't stop taking his meds as prescribed? Is that a risk that we should be taking as a society? If he at some point starts reducing his medication schedule or stops taking them altogether and ends up killing another person, what do we say to the family members of the victim as we look them in the eye? Also, what kind of message does this case send to anyone out there who might be thinking of committing a murder and then trying to get off with NCR diagnosis? I guess my overall question here is why should we let our compassion and forgiveness for this person get in the way of doing what is best for society as a whole? At what point do the tears, agony, and heartbreak of the family members and friends of the beheading victim actually mean something to us? Why shouldn't we allow those things to factor into our decision making?
For the record I'm not in favor of the death penalty. This man should be kept in a facility (not jail/prison) where he can be supervised and have his medical needs looked after.
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1. Speaking of common sense, perhaps we should apply it in this case. People that have worked with him daily for the last 8+ years think he is safe. Common sense says that any one of those physicians probably know more about his situation than everyone on this message board combined. And as a whole, they have come to the agreement that he should be freed. What does that tell you about the position you've taken?
2. There is no such thing as a guarantee. I can't guarantee I won't kill you one day. You can't guarantee that you won't ever kill your neighbour. There is no such thing.
3. The rights of the individual aren't overriden by the fears of the many. Mr. Li was sick, symptomatic, untreated, and a danger to public safety. Now he is sick, asymptomatic, treated, and no longer a danger to society. There is no further basis for keeping him in custody, medical or legal.
3. I feel sorry for Mr. McLean's family. But their desire for vengeance or what they feel is justice does not take precedence over what our legal system can and is designed to provide.