First Alitoism to Groan About

The Alito broke a tie in the wrong direction in Kansas vs. Marsh overruling the Kansas Supreme Court which had declared the state's death penalty statute unconstitutional.

Blah, I knew Sir Russell of Feingold should have pressed his attack and skewered the Alito to the heart! Alas that Sir Russell cares even for those that spurn his goodly nature.

Ok, enough of that. The bottom line is that the death penalty has now been re-activated in Kansas. There are 8 men currently on death row in the state and there are a number of pending cases in which the death penalty can now be pursued.

Based upon the law, the ruling was perhaps correct, I don’t know anything about the law, but based upon what is justice, it was wrong.

The Kansas statute instructs that if mitigating circumstances and aggregating factors are balanced, the tie goes to the death penalty. Whatever happened to the death penalty being reserved for the most heinous offenders? Wouldn’t it make more sense to say that the aggregating factors should have to clearly outweigh the mitigating factors? The last time I looked the burden of proof was still on the prosecution, a tie went to the runner, a double catch went to the receiver and life was preferred over death.

I had the same problem with Alito in his Casey decision, there, as here, he ruled with his head and not with his heart. I don’t expect Thomas, Scalia, Kennedy or Roberts to understand the difference but a Jersey boy should know better.

Shame on you Sammy.