I have to get political again

I posted about this several months ago, when it was first brought to the California Court of Appeals. Now this case is finally being heard once again. Allow me to refresh your memory.

Michael Morales was convicted of murdering 17-year-old Terri Winchell in 1981. Terri was dating a boy who was apparently having a homosexual affair with a guy named Ricky Ortega (Terri was unaware of this). Ortega became jealous of Terri and asked his cousin, Michael Morales to help him get rid of her.

Morales attacked Terri from behind and tried to strangle her with his belt. When the belt broke, Terri begged Ricky Ortega for help and Ortega ran away. Morales then hit her repeatedly in the head with a hammer, beating her into unconsciousness, and crushing her skull. Morales then raped her. Wanting to finish the job, he then stabbed her four times in the chest. Terri Winchell died from both the head and chest wounds.

Morales has not denied committing the crime. In fact, I believe he has confessed to it. Terri’s parents were told that the case would likely go through 10 years of appeals before her killer would have his sentence carried out. It has been over 25 years now. When will these people get some closure? When will victims get a little consideration? We are so damned concerned with not causing any pain for a brutal, vicious killer that we forget there was a child victim of rape and murder here. Civil liberties and rights are great, but what about the civil liberties of the victim for crap's sake? So now that she's not here, they just don't matter anymore? BS.

I, for one, am not concerned if the needle hurts a tiny bit going in. In fact, I hope they have to dig and dig to find a good vein. I’m not concerned if the cocktail burns a little going in. In fact, I hope it feels like it is burning him from the inside out. I’m not concerned if he is aware of everything going on around him. In fact, I only wish that on his way out, someone could lean down and whisper in his ear "This is what you deserve." I don’t care that he found God while he was in prison. Bully for him. Maybe he’ll get lucky and the God he found will forgive him on the other side. I could give a rat’s ass (pardon my french, Jules) if he was high on PCP at the time of the murder. The evidence presented still showed that it was premeditated. What, was he just walking around with a hammer just because? Yeah, I always do that. "Hmmmm, just in case I happen to come across someone I was asked to kill, I think I’ll carry around this hammer. Oh, lookie, there she is... it must be a crime of opportunity, and I’m so high, I don’t know what I’m doing, so I think I’ll just bash her skull in. Oh, and I think I’ll finish her off with the big knife I carry around in case I happen to need to gut a fish I might just catch. Yeah, that’s the ticket."

Gimme a break.

I believe that there are some cases where the death penalty is not warranted, definitely. It is not appropriate for everybody and every case. And everybody that receives the death penalty sentence should not have gotten it. However, I also believe that there are some cases where it is completely warranted. This confessed brutal rapist and killer of a teenaged girl is definitely one who deserves it.