The underlying argument used by the United States Catholic Conference of Bishops in their push to abolish capital punishment, is that modern carceral technology can protect the innocent from the aggressor, so a sentence of life in prison without parole can replace the option of capital punishment.
However, as we detailed in our book, Capital Punishment & Catholic Social Teaching: A Tradition of Support, that argument is incorrect and abolishing the capital punishment option would be a dramatic break with thousands of years of Church teaching.
This article (several others are noted in our book) reveals how well equipped prisoners are to control crime outside of prison through the use of information technology.
An excerpt.
“ONTARIO - These days social networking sites and cell phones are not just a place to catch up with friends.
“Gangs in Southern California are using them to orchestra crime, commit fraud and traffic drugs.
“The issue is so severe at California Institution for Men in Chino, that Lt. Thomas Goetz said he has assigned two staff members to try to eliminate the use of pre-paid disposable phones in the prison.
"The cell phones have become a communication tool between inside and outside gang members that we can't circumvent," he said.”
Lampstand Foundation website, http://www.lampstandfoundation.org/
"The sinner is at the very heart of Christianity. Nobody is so competent as the sinner in matters of Christianity. Nobody, except the saint." Charles Peguy (1873-1914)
About
- David H. Lukenbill
- I am a California native, married, we have one daughter and live close to the American River with two cats and all the wild critters we can feed. I am a management consultant to nonprofit organizations and have an Associates of Arts degree in Administration of Justice from Sacramento City College, a Bachelor of Science degree in Organizational Behavior from the University of San Francisco and a Master of Public Administration degree, also from the University of San Francisco.