EYE FOR A EYE, LIFE FOR A LIFE

“In the State of Texas, every potential juror must answer the question of whether they are able to impose the Death Penalty or not? Only those who answer yes are qualified to sit on a capital murder jury.”

The debate over the Death Penalty has always been a sensitive topic for many in America. A central argument supporters for the Death Penalty utilize, ironically, is religious in nature. Almost all of us are familiar with the “eye for a eye, life for a life!” chant. Without question, most, if not all of us recognize this verse from the Old Testament and how advocates for the Death Penalty justify their position on executions based on the Old Testament. With this in mind,.using the standard of the Old Testament Scriptures, how many are familiar with the following verses?

“A single witness shall not suffice against a person for any crime or for any wrong in connection with any offence that he has committed. Only on the evidence of two or three witnesses shall a charge be established. If a malicious witness arises to accuse a person of wrongdoing , then both parties to the dispute shall appear before the LORD, before the priests and the judges who are in office in those days. The judges shall inquire diligently, and if the witness is a false witness and has accuses his brother falsely, then you shall do to him as he had meant to do to his brother. So you shall purge the evil from your midst. And the rest shall hear and fear, and shall never again commit any such evil amoung you. Your eye shall not pity. It shall be life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot.” (Deut 19: 15-21 ESV)

By applying the same standards of the Old Testament by which advocates for the Death Penalty justify executing murderers, how many prosecutors are currently sitting on Death Row awaiting execution? It is a documented fact that prosecutors in Capital Murder cases have both used false witnesses and coerced others into giving false and misleading testimony. In fact, many times a prosecutor will actually pay a witness to testify. If a witness is pursuing a righteous cause by helping a prosecutor put away a stone cold killer, why would he need to be paid for his testimony?

How about the prosecutor himself, when he becomes a false witness by knowingly using false evidence and testimony to win a conviction? The statements above are not arguments toward a “theoretical” worst case scenario. It will sicken most to find that most shockingly, these documented cases occur far too often! In 1996, the Tennessee Court of Criminal Appeals overturned Robert Spurlock's conviction on the grounds that prosecutors Lawrence Tay Whitley and Jerry Kitchen failed to correct the false testimony given by prosecution witnesses and used false evidence! [874. S.W. 2d 602 (Spurlock)]. What about the case of Kerry Max Cook? The following quote is cited from the “actual Innocence” report by: The Center for Public Integrity (compiled by: Neil Gordon).

“In 1996, the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals overturned Cook's conviction because the prosecutors, including A. D. Clark, Michael Thompson and David Dobbs, withheld and/or lied about evidence on a variety of matters concerning Cook's guilt and the credibility of state witnesses and attempted to interview Cook without the knowledge or consent of his lawyers. The court's opinion also notes that a state witness admitted that Clark pressured him to present false and misleading testimony .” [940 S.W. 2d 623; 741 S.W. 2d 928].

In these two documented cases, where is the “eye for a eye, life for a life” standard placed on a false witness? If a person desires to apply Biblical principles righteously and in a fair manner, why is it, not one of these prosecutors who knowingly used false evidence and intentionally introduced false evidence has been sentenced to the same form of punishment they were seeking to inflict, which happened to be the Death Penalty in these cases! The Scriptures clearly bear out the following:

“…and if the witness is a false witness and has accused his brother falsely, then you shall do to him as he had meant to do to his brother….It shall be life for life, eye for eye….”

These prosecutors were seeking the Death Penalty against these men. These prosecutors maliciously and intentionally tried to have these men murdered by the State of Tennessee and Texas, respectively! In lay-man's terms, the prosecutors are literally guilty of “attempted murder” or “attempted Capital Murder”. Advocates who are swift to use the Bible in order to justify and support the Death Penalty, who feel righteous in applying the Death Penalty in Capital Cases, I ask? Where is their sense of indignation and outrage that none of these prosecutors have yet to be executed? True righteousness does not consist of applying the Old Testament standard of “eye for a eye, and life for a life” toward a murder defendant, but overlooking and ignoring the same standard of judgement on prosecutors who use false witnesses and present false evidence. It is called hypocrisy! In these instances, it is the deadliest form of hypocrisy! It is perversion of justice. The Bible speaks out against this:

“You shall not pervert justice. You shall not show partiality, and you shall not accept a bribe, for a bribe blinds the eye of the wise and subverts the cause of the righteous. Justice, and only justice, you shall follow…” (Deut 16: 19-20 ESV)

Chuong Tong #999260
Texas Death row © 2004