Posted 6/13/01 Many Americans troubled about capital punishment Many Americans went about their business with troubled hearts Monday, bothered by the execution of Timothy McVeigh for bombing and killing 168 Americans. The death penalty as a deterrent and a punishment has come under the microscope of a public, largely because of the intense media coverage, which dramatized to a fault the details of McVeighís death. It is easy to say that the punishment fit the crime, for no punishment, even death, could atone for the loss of so many federal employees and children. Therefore, in our free society it is easy to say justice was served through a fair trial, through a confession by McVeigh and through the carrying out of the death by legal injection. The trouble comes in examining the death penalty in light of recent revelations that some individuals sentenced to death were innocent of the crimes, as evidenced by new DNA findings. The assumption had been, if they were sentenced to death they must be guilty. We know also that the threat of a death sentence does not really deter those bent on killing someone. And even the relatives of victims of the bombing say McVeighís death does not heal; it does not close the wound in their hearts. What must bother some is that the government granted McVeighís wish to die. A more severe punishment might have been to sentence him to life without parole, so he could be tormented by the consequences of his conduct. Or, perhaps by living out his life and dying a natural death, he may eventually have truly repented and become a positive force inside the prison. Had his life been spared, we might have had the opportunity to learn what caused McVeigh and others like him to battle the federal government. Fortunately, in Minnesota, there is no death penalty to debate. Public opinion polls reveal Americans are having serious second thoughts about the wisdom of putting criminals to death. McVeigh, unwittingly through his execution, has caused this moment in which we as a nation are compelled to re-examine the death penalty as a form of punishment which some say is as cruel as the crime. To the relatives of the victims, McVeighís execution was understandably just. To many others, however, the governmentís taking a life raises serious doubts about the death penalty. The issue needs to be discussed. ñ DON HEINZMAN ©Post Review