Stanley Williams meets lex talionis

Early this morning, somewhat after midnight Pacific time, the state of California executed Stanley "Tookie" Williams, the founder of the "Crips" street gang. He was convicted in 1981 of four brutal murders, and failed to receive the last-minute pardon his partisans had lobbied for.

Williams was condemned in 1981 for gunning down convenience store clerk Albert Owens, 26, at a 7-Eleven in Whittier and killing Yen-I Yang, 76, Tsai-Shai Chen Yang, 63, and the couple's daughter Yu-Chin Yang Lin, 43, at the Los Angeles motel they owned. Williams claimed he was innocent.

Witnesses at the trial said he boasted about the killings, stating "You should have heard the way he sounded when I shot him." Williams then made a growling noise and laughed for five to six minutes, according to the transcript that the governor referenced in his denial of clemency.

Much has been made of Williams' life in prison, about his "change" and public renunciation of the violent gang lifestyle. He was even nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize. Therefore, say his partisans, he should have been spared.

But despite what the media may say, these events do not make us reflect upon the death penalty; instead, what we should be discussing is whether our legal system retains any shred of retributive justice.

The theory of lex talionis, "law as retaliation," holds that for every crime, there should be a punishment--the state should exact retribution on behalf of the wronged. In our society, however, there is a growing emphasis on the rehabilitation of the criminal. We put him away so that he cannot harm society; but as he is likely to be released one day, it is important to turn him away from crime. This is laudable. But what about a criminal who is entirely sorry the moment after he's committed a crime? If a man makes a sincere turnaround, let's say, one that everyone believes, should we let him out right away?

I think most people would answer "no," that such a person must still pay for his crimes. Why then should we reduce Williams' punishment in any way? If his death sentence was commuted to life in prison, why stop there? Should we have released the man? Some say yes. But I have to wonder where we stand as a society if this is true--aren't there some crimes for which no punishment is sufficient? And if there are, how come four cold, brutal murders don't count?

Tags: Stanley Williams, Tookie, Crips, California Death Penalty, Execution, Murder, Retribution