Gardner execution served no good purpose

06/18/2010
by Debbra A. Ralston

Ronnie Lee Gardner said he hoped to get it right when he is reincarnated. So do we have it right? Does execution "right" the situation (or the life) that went all wrong? Is it right to kill the person who killed, perpetuating a new wave of sorrow, loss and eventual healing?

As I opened the paper this morning, I saw pictures of Gardner's family gathered together, some hugging, some sobbing, and some staring bewildered. The lights of the prison twinkled in the background. I thought immediately about the similarities with my family during a recent tragedy only a month ago, gathering to mourn the death of my 24-year-old nephew.

Regardless of the circumstances, losing a loved one is painful and always reminds us of life's fragility. Not all family members make great choices, but in most cases we continue to love them. Not unlike the victims' families that lost their loved ones at Gardner's hand.

I have heard it said that society is a mirror of the family. If this is true, what then is our responsibility to criminals like Gardner? This is a complex and controversial question without black and white answers. But as a starting point, I think we need to treat those who kill humanely, in a way that perhaps their early caregivers did not. Such was the case with Gardner.

Not all murderers suffered abuse as children, but many have. We all begin as innocent children who go on to have unique experiences that shape who we are as adults. Some of us learn quickly and easily in nurturing environments how to get it "right." Others are not so lucky. Some suffer sustained physical and emotional abuse and thus fail to develop skills to function normally, which affects all their relationships. If they survive, they often repeat the only behavior they have known. We judge them worthless and feel they "deserve" to die if they commit murder. The fact is, at a very deep level, they have already died.

The most important human feeling, self worth, has already suffered a very slow and painful death from abuse they did not deserve. We should ask ourselves how we feel about repeating the disregard for human worth aimed at people who have lived this message for much of their lives.

It is dangerous for a society to ignore a moral basis for recognizing the value of every person's life with reverence, even when they have caused great harm.

So with Gardner's execution, have we helped or hurt our society?

Prison without parole is a better alternative to safeguarding us from dangerous people and puts us on higher moral ground. I question the wisdom of adding more grief and pain to the chain of events that started with Gardner's life pattern of getting it wrong.

Gardner deserved to spend the rest of his life in prison for the harm he caused so many and for his disregard for the sanctity of life.

But executing him did not help anyone.

Debbra A. Ralston , a business research analyst and a writer, lives in Salt Lake City.

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