Washington Gov. Jay Inslee has joined the growing list of governors who have imposed moratoriums on executions. Inslee did not commute the death sentences of any of the 9 men on Washington’s death row; his moratorium only gives them a reprieve while he is in office, so they’re not permanently off the hook. Inslee cited the high cost of death penalty trials and unequalness in application of the death penalty, and his desire to “start a conversation” about repealing Washington’s death penalty. I suspect he also may have been influenced by the growing difficulty of obtaining the drugs used in lethal injections, and the fact that states are being forced to use untried drug concoctions is opening new avenues of legal appeals.
The death penalty has long been a contentious political issue, with supporters and opponents dividing more or less along conservative-liberal lines, although that cleavage isn’t a perfect one. The pro and con arguments are well known and I won’t reiterate them here. Washington has used the death penalty sparingly, and some of those executed — Westley Alan Dodd and Charles Rodman Campbell come to mind — were truly vicious killers. As I recall, the last time the death penalty was on the ballot in our state, something like 70% of Washington voters were in favor of retaining it. My guess is the results will be similar if it’s put to another vote.
I won’t state my personal position on this issue here, because my opinion doesn’t matter and won’t influence anyone. There probably aren’t many, if any, people who are neutral on this issue. The real question is whether public officials, such as Gov. Inslee, should override the majority of voters. On many other issues, conservatives are perfectly willing to do so, when it serves their selfish interests, so they really shouldn’t complain about Gov. Inslee’s action on those grounds. The debate really should be about the merits of having a death penalty on the books and the option of going to the extra trouble and expense of seeking death sentences for serial killers, child killers, torture killers, mass murderers, cop killers, and other extraordinarily repulsive murderers.