Text/Zhu Luanjing's first private public account: Yishui Pavilion
The movie "Death Row" has a score of 8. It was broadcast in December 1995. It has a history of more than 20 years. Why did it suddenly turn out and watch it?
Because this is a film recommended for law students to watch, I followed the film list given by the institution to watch it one by one.
The film's point of view is not the victim, but the perpetrator who has committed a serious crime, and tells a true story from the perspective of a nun.
The opening chapter specifically states that most of the death row prisoners cannot afford to pay lawyers' fees and cannot afford to hire a good lawyer to sue for themselves, and the lawyers of the prisoners in this film also disappeared for no reason, so they had to turn to nuns and other charitable organizations for help.
Dear Sister Helen, thank you for your reply. I am writing to you from my home, which is a small cell. I stay here 23 hours a day, and the death row is different. We are different, they isolate us. We are elite prisoners because we are sentenced to death. It's easy to get loose here, I use my locker to lift weights, keep my muscles strong, and gain weight easily. Rice, potatoes, pancakes, beans, sometimes I feel like a fattened pig for Christmas dinner. I had a dream that I was about to sit in the electric chair, and God, wearing a chef's hat, came into my cell, covered me with breadcrumbs, and licked his butcher's knife. Maybe I'm a weirdo to have this kind of dream, but when you're surrounded by people who want to kill you, you're full of whimsy, thank you for your letter.
This is the confession of the prisoner's letter to the nun at the beginning. From this, it can be seen that the prisoner has a very obvious struggle in the prison, probably due to the fear of death. I personally think that the touching foreshadowing is the last sentence.
But when you're surrounded by people who want to kill you, you're full of whims.
When the priest asked the nun why she was not wearing her nun dress, the nun said:
Our nuns have not worn monastic clothes for twenty years. The Pope said dress appropriately, not necessarily monastic clothes.
The priest listened, frowning slightly, and replied:
It seems that you understand it according to your own preferences.
After explaining the crime of the criminal, the priest and the nun asked sincerely:
Sister, what is this for? With morbid fantasies? Show mercy? They were very sinful, not like Jimmy Cagney's humiliation and his innocence. These people are liars, they will do everything possible to use you, you have to be extremely careful, you understand? These people rarely see women, maybe if you wear monastic clothes, they will treat you a little more solemnly. Your contempt for authority will only encourage them to do the same.
The priest's words were a wake-up call for the nuns, and also showed the audience the priest's position and views.
Prisoners came from poor families and were not born well, and they caused a lot of trouble from childhood to adulthood. But what he couldn't let go of was that another person who was with him was obviously the main criminal, but because he had hired a good lawyer, he didn't have to face the death penalty. It was only because his family was poor that he had to face the punishment of death.
Sister: Pang Silai claimed that the murderer was Vitello. You think he was lying, and Vitoro also said that Pang Silai was the murderer. Attorney: Both of them shirk the charges against each other, and one of them is lying. We know it was the two of them who committed the crime. Sister: Then why was one sentenced to life imprisonment and the other to death? Lawyer: Maybe Pang Sly is more suspicious. Vitello has a lawyer who compares the price well, so that the jury believes that there is a reasonable doubt. Sister: So he was imprisoned for life and Pang Slai was on death row? Lawyer: Sister, he needs help. There's a lawyer named Hilton Barber who turned me down on this case, maybe you can convince him. Sister: So that he can have a retrial and clear his name? I don't want to meet him on the street. Lawyer: He's not going to go unpunished, he's an accomplice and he's going to be imprisoned for life. Spending the rest of my life in a Louisiana prison was a hell of a time, I just tried to save his life.
The nun had the same attitude towards prisoners as others. Although she was a clergyman, she still struggled in her heart. After listening to the lawyer's words, he suddenly became silent and moved, perhaps just hoping that the prisoner could save a small life.
Faced with the same crime and punishment, different family backgrounds and ways of rebutting can change the determination of the verdict. There is no fairness for the two criminals either.
Perhaps that was the reason why the nun was moved and willing to work hard for his sentence. For two people, for the same crime, why is one sentenced to death and the other sentenced to life imprisonment?
Since the nun accepted this case, the attitude of the people around her has changed dramatically, and they can't help but cast vicious words. Because she was actually helping a murderer exonerate.
In the eyes of everyone, it is a matter of course for a murderer to be sentenced to death, and it is the most puzzling act to excuse him.
Why has it repeatedly stated that public opinion should not and cannot become an external force that influences the referee?
Because it is impossible to achieve complete justice, and what the outside world knows may not really be the whole truth of the matter. But if public opinion is one-sided, it is very likely to lead to an uncontrollable bad situation.
The nun listened to her lawyer and tried to get the prisoner's mother to testify against her son, sparking the following conversation.
Sister: You should know that they have set a date for their execution. Prisoner's mother: Yes. The prison also called to say that if the execution is wrong, can I buy insurance compensation? It was ridiculous that we skipped three meals. Sister: His pardon hearing is on Wednesday, and his lawyer thinks it would be helpful for you to go to court. Prisoner's mother: What about Matthew's opinion? Sister: He's worried, he wants to protect you. Prisoner's mother: It's too late, that "InsideCrime" show covered his case and told me how I helped Matthew, like a mother to save a broken child, and now I'm famous. I was in a store yesterday and saw two women staring at me. When I approached them, one of them said, "I wish they would kill that beast sooner" "Matthew Pangsley". Sister: It's too mean to speak. Prisoner's mother: My children are treated badly at school, and they are often bullied by their classmates. Flatten them and scold them. Someone else put a dead squirrel in Troy's locker. Poor he came home crying. What the hell did he do to people? I've been wondering what the hell I've done.
When the nun came home, the people who cared about her couldn't help but talk to her about very serious topics, and of course they were trying to change her mind and get her to stop defending the murderer.
Sister: His family was poor, and he started causing trouble when he was 15 years old. Family: The same goes for all 15-year-olds. There are many single-parent families in your community, but no children kill or rapists. You are being deceived. What about the parents of the deceased? Did you visit and console them? Sister: Will they speak to me? Family: Isn't there a lot of people in your community who need help? Sister: Yes, I am still serving them. Family: Then why go to see the death row? It was not their turn to help. The time and energy you spend on such a person is enough to help many troubled youths. Family: It's not wrong for you to help others, but you have to be rational. You have loved to take in stray cats and dogs since you were a child. If we take in all the animals, then the family will starve. You are kind-hearted, but beware of others taking advantage of you, I don't want to see you being deceived.
More than once, and not just a small group of people worried that she was being blinded by prisoners. It has to be said that the nun's character must be regarded as a Virgin's character, and she resolutely chose to go against other people and endure the pressure from the outside world to help prisoners commute their sentences. Such a protagonist setting, no matter where it is placed, will not please the audience, but it is precisely because of such a nun that she is willing to help prisoners commute their sentences.
The prisoner's defence lawyer said at the hearing:
Frankly speaking, no death row prisoner is a rich family. Today, Matthew Pangsley is here because he is poor, so only the lawyers appointed by the state government help in the lawsuit. It was a tax lawyer who had never done a death penalty case, a layman. It took four hours to select a jury and five days of trial, during which the lawyer spoke against it only once. If Matthew had a little more money, he could hire a number of great, first-rate investigators, ballistics experts, psychologists, and comprehensive ideal jurors. In this way, you can be sure that Matthew Pangsley will not be sitting here today, asking for amnesty to save his life. The death penalty has a long history. We bury people alive and cut off their heads. In front of the public, the prisoners were burned alive, and the scene was terrifying. In this century, we've been looking for more humane ways to execute death row prisoners. There were firing squads, gas chambers. But now we have invented one of the most humane methods - injections. The death row prisoner was tied up and given an anesthesia shot, then a shot that ruptured his lungs, and a third shot that stopped his heart. It's like killing an old horse, he looks like he's asleep, but his internal organs are devastated. The muscles on his face would have been contorted, but the anesthesia needles made him look peaceful, so the scene would not be horrific. We didn't have to stain our hands with blood, and we couldn't see how the internal organs of the condemned were twisted and festered. But An Ran sat aside and nodded and said, "Justice has been served."
The lawyer who was suing for the families of the victims made another statement at the hearing:
Justice has not been done, Matthew Fat Rice persevered in asking for a review, including a review of the judgment, as well as multiple appeals to the state and federal courts, as well as Mr. Barber's repeated petitions. However, the court has determined who the murderer is. Matthew Fat Rice is not a good young man, but a cold-blooded killer. The murder was deployed and bloody and brutal. The man shot Walter twice in the back of the head, raped Hope, and stabbed her 17 times before shooting the young girl twice in the back of the head. The parents of the deceased will never see their children graduate from college, never attend their children's weddings, never spend Christmas together again, and never have grandchildren. They grieved the loss of their children and daughters, and only wanted the prisoners to get the punishment they deserved. I implore you to think twice and take the courage to make the decision to carry out Matthew Pashley's execution.
Jesus also said, "Whoever strikes the sword will die by the sword."
This phrase has two sides, one applies to criminals and the other applies to perpetrators.
Murder for life, doesn't it also correspond to this sentence? "Anyone who uses a knife will die under the knife."
What about the executioner?
Can not help but thought provoking.
Hope's family (victim's family): The police didn't let us identify the body, saying that we would not be able to bear it. But I just can't get them to bury a body before I'm completely sure it's Hope. I called my brother who was a dentist and I told him to go to the funeral home to check the dental records of the deceased. He had been against the death penalty until he reached into the sticky bag and touched Hope's mouth, but after that day he was in full support of the execution.
When the nun visited the victim's family, she couldn't help but burst into tears, and at the same time moved me a little as an audience member. However, what the nun said next was also thought-provoking.
I've never tried to deal with something like this, I've just tried to follow the example of Jesus who said that even the most wicked people have value in their lives.
The priest and nun spoke again after the prisoner had set a date for the execution.
Priest: I heard that you protested outside the door when the execution was last executed. Sister: Yes. Priest: Are you familiar with the Old Testament scriptures? "No murder is allowed. Anyone who sheds blood will be shed." Sister: Are you familiar with the New Testament? Jesus spoke of forgiveness and sanctification. Priest: Poncelet had to understand that Jesus died for his sins, and if he felt that way, he could have redemption and eternal life. What we think about the death penalty is not the point. Look at Romans: "Everyone should submit to the authority above, for there is no authority that is not of God, so whoever resists will bring his own punishment."
You are looking for true fraternity, and you have to face all kinds of dangers, and angelic announcements are common, but incarnations are rare. Helen, you are not a saint.
These words came from the nun's inner reflection and self-comfort.
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I have a lot of thoughts about this movie.
The prisoner in the film is not actually a person worthy of sympathy. He also participated in murder and rape, but he refused to admit that he killed people from beginning to end. It was only in his last words that he really said to the victim's family. A last word asking for forgiveness.
The main theme of this film review center revolves around the death penalty. Although it is explained from the perspective of prisoners, it has repeatedly questioned the rationality of the death penalty.
As we all know, scholars have been discussing the issue of the abolition of the death penalty for a long time, but neither of them has come to a conclusion.
From what I've seen, the nuns are so keen to commute the prisoners' sentences that it's true that the two prisoners were all sentenced unevenly.
Poncelet ended up with the death penalty for not having the money to hire a lawyer, while the other was just jailed for life. From this point of view, it is understandable to pursue justice and commute his sentence for him.
But for the victim's family, he was not innocent, and his death was not a pity.
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From this film, I saw some other things, not all in support of the death penalty or abolition, but
Although this prisoner deserved what he deserved, what if he were someone else who was truly innocent?
If no one is willing to pursue justice through appearances, how can this person prove himself innocent?
The Nie Shubin case has been going on for several years. Thanks to a famous lawyer who defended him back then, it has finally come to light and he was acquitted.
Another example is the sensational case of Simpson's wife murder. At that time, it was indeed believed that he was the only murderer, but the truth was not the case.
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