Thanks for posting this. I missed it the first time around. It is brilliant and heart-breaking. His discussion of empathy reminds me of Bryan Stevenson's mantra that none of us are defined by the one worse thing we did in life. Someday, perhaps, we will become a civilized, even empathetic, nation, but it will take a lot more work to get there.
Hadn't read this the first time around. Thank you so much for sharing, this is among the best writing I've read in my whole life. Poor man. So much to think about. Especially as a teacher
There are so many stories of people, guilty or not, who overcame the inherent horror of incarceration and became smarter, or stronger, or just in some way better. How nice it would be if we didn't give up on any human, because at some point we finally acknowledge that we as humans ourselves shouldn't have that power.
Also let's remember that crimes that can ruin someone's life are not incarcerated equally. Bernie Madoff didn't even get the death penalty, and that dude just blew through all the federal sentencing guidelines for fraud. So if that dude can just take the hugest financial dump on society and not be put to death, why do we have it for anybody?
I remember telling a friend of mine that I thought Ken Lay (of Enron fame) was more deserving of the death penalty than many who currently sit on death row. I thought, because he ruined (and likely ended, indirectly) so many lives, that the worst punishments should be reserved for him.
I wish that this brilliant young man, who was murdered by the state of Texas, was still with us. He was NOT the killer, so "justice" is not something that Texas follows. As for all the hate-filled "religious" people, whose pastors want more vengeance, you can only imagine who their "God" is. This man was not innocent of his crime and admits it, but if anyone should have been given the opportunity to spread his intelligence and ideas, it's Ray Jasper.
I agree that Jasper seems thoughtful in his letter and that the state murdering him was wrong (bc the death penalty in general is wrong), but Jasper’s description of his involvement in the killing is dishonest. He planned the murder and initially slit the victim’s throat before his partner stabbed him 25 times; to quote the also worthwhile letter written by the victim’s brother that Hamilton linked above:
“Jasper's reasoning was that since the M.E. cited the 25 stab wounds as the cause of death and not the throat slit committed by Jasper, he was technically not guilty of murder. You can make of that what you will, but it seems any reasonable person would hold Jasper as culpable in the murder as the other defendant who finished off David.”
I don’t blame Jasper for holding to his line of thought if he thought it held any possibility of changing his sentence, but it also means he never publicly accepted accountability for the murder he took part in. None of that justifies his execution or the broader structural injustices he wrote about, but it is important context that his letter avoids acknowledging.
CP I just learned this morning that he was in on the murder and went as far as slitting the victim's throat, which yes, is certainly attempted murder of the first order, but I think it's grim that those who finally finished the job got to stay alive and this young man had to die. Justice in America, but I'm grateful to you for making me aware of this. In future, I'll attempt to get the full story before commenting.
I just finished signing up for jury duty, and can to substack and read this wonderful letter. For a young man who could not physically give his daughter a lot that letter is a gift to the world and to her. And so I think she also has others, nothing like having a father there, no nothing like it but he clearly was indeed the best father.
I have, of late, followed closely the story of Robert Roberson III. There is a website explaining who he is. https://justiceforroberson.com.
I believe he's still living, on death row. How great it would be if he could be gotten off death row. Not because he didn't do the crime. But because it was a crime that was never even done.
Have you thought of swinging up to Concord Nh while you’re in Boston? There’s a crew that’s been fighting for better recognition of Elizabeth Gurley Flynn, and NHPR staff just got their fist contract
Our criminal justice system is screwed up. The Extreme Court is breaking it further. And I really have no words for the people who thirst for the deaths of the defendants. I used to think we were better than that as a society, but that was more than 10 years ago. Now I'm not so sure. I don't think I could ever vote to execute someone; certainly not unless the crime was incredibly heinous, and I'm not even sure about that. But I think Ray is right about quite a lot. (Retired attorney here). Americans are incredibly vengeful. They have no interest in rehabilitation; they want punishment. They do not GAF if that increases the likelihood of recidivism - their answer to that is "then we should not have released them." The typical American has little understanding of what the Constitution means, except when the government does something to them they do not like, and then, suddenly, they become a fan of constitutional rights. But only for me, not for thee. (Incidentally, the same selfishness explains support for right to work laws. Idiot says to themselves, "well, I, I don't need a union; I can get the best deal for myself without paying dues to a union; screw everyone else. I wouldn't want a penny of my money to help the next guy! Let's make that the law. " Sigh.
Ah, a decade later, still rips my heart in two.
Thanks for posting this. I missed it the first time around. It is brilliant and heart-breaking. His discussion of empathy reminds me of Bryan Stevenson's mantra that none of us are defined by the one worse thing we did in life. Someday, perhaps, we will become a civilized, even empathetic, nation, but it will take a lot more work to get there.
Hadn't read this the first time around. Thank you so much for sharing, this is among the best writing I've read in my whole life. Poor man. So much to think about. Especially as a teacher
There are so many stories of people, guilty or not, who overcame the inherent horror of incarceration and became smarter, or stronger, or just in some way better. How nice it would be if we didn't give up on any human, because at some point we finally acknowledge that we as humans ourselves shouldn't have that power.
Also let's remember that crimes that can ruin someone's life are not incarcerated equally. Bernie Madoff didn't even get the death penalty, and that dude just blew through all the federal sentencing guidelines for fraud. So if that dude can just take the hugest financial dump on society and not be put to death, why do we have it for anybody?
I remember telling a friend of mine that I thought Ken Lay (of Enron fame) was more deserving of the death penalty than many who currently sit on death row. I thought, because he ruined (and likely ended, indirectly) so many lives, that the worst punishments should be reserved for him.
My friend was floored.
I wish that this brilliant young man, who was murdered by the state of Texas, was still with us. He was NOT the killer, so "justice" is not something that Texas follows. As for all the hate-filled "religious" people, whose pastors want more vengeance, you can only imagine who their "God" is. This man was not innocent of his crime and admits it, but if anyone should have been given the opportunity to spread his intelligence and ideas, it's Ray Jasper.
I agree that Jasper seems thoughtful in his letter and that the state murdering him was wrong (bc the death penalty in general is wrong), but Jasper’s description of his involvement in the killing is dishonest. He planned the murder and initially slit the victim’s throat before his partner stabbed him 25 times; to quote the also worthwhile letter written by the victim’s brother that Hamilton linked above:
“Jasper's reasoning was that since the M.E. cited the 25 stab wounds as the cause of death and not the throat slit committed by Jasper, he was technically not guilty of murder. You can make of that what you will, but it seems any reasonable person would hold Jasper as culpable in the murder as the other defendant who finished off David.”
I don’t blame Jasper for holding to his line of thought if he thought it held any possibility of changing his sentence, but it also means he never publicly accepted accountability for the murder he took part in. None of that justifies his execution or the broader structural injustices he wrote about, but it is important context that his letter avoids acknowledging.
CP I just learned this morning that he was in on the murder and went as far as slitting the victim's throat, which yes, is certainly attempted murder of the first order, but I think it's grim that those who finally finished the job got to stay alive and this young man had to die. Justice in America, but I'm grateful to you for making me aware of this. In future, I'll attempt to get the full story before commenting.
I just finished signing up for jury duty, and can to substack and read this wonderful letter. For a young man who could not physically give his daughter a lot that letter is a gift to the world and to her. And so I think she also has others, nothing like having a father there, no nothing like it but he clearly was indeed the best father.
I have, of late, followed closely the story of Robert Roberson III. There is a website explaining who he is. https://justiceforroberson.com.
I believe he's still living, on death row. How great it would be if he could be gotten off death row. Not because he didn't do the crime. But because it was a crime that was never even done.
Have you thought of swinging up to Concord Nh while you’re in Boston? There’s a crew that’s been fighting for better recognition of Elizabeth Gurley Flynn, and NHPR staff just got their fist contract
https://www.nhpr.org/nh-news/2023-08-05/elizabeth-gurley-flynn-rebel-girl-state-house-celebration-lawsuit
I have not but if you feel like you wanna round up a crowd of people to come out, email me.
Our criminal justice system is screwed up. The Extreme Court is breaking it further. And I really have no words for the people who thirst for the deaths of the defendants. I used to think we were better than that as a society, but that was more than 10 years ago. Now I'm not so sure. I don't think I could ever vote to execute someone; certainly not unless the crime was incredibly heinous, and I'm not even sure about that. But I think Ray is right about quite a lot. (Retired attorney here). Americans are incredibly vengeful. They have no interest in rehabilitation; they want punishment. They do not GAF if that increases the likelihood of recidivism - their answer to that is "then we should not have released them." The typical American has little understanding of what the Constitution means, except when the government does something to them they do not like, and then, suddenly, they become a fan of constitutional rights. But only for me, not for thee. (Incidentally, the same selfishness explains support for right to work laws. Idiot says to themselves, "well, I, I don't need a union; I can get the best deal for myself without paying dues to a union; screw everyone else. I wouldn't want a penny of my money to help the next guy! Let's make that the law. " Sigh.
"When I worked at Gawker, I used to publish letters from death row inmates. " The link under letters seems broken.