Not Innocent.

Thanks to Dawn for passing on to me the news that the new DNA testing shows only a minuscule chance that someone other than Roger Coleman committed the crime for which he was executed. As one of the investigators is quoted as saying, the news feels like a kick to the gut. I'm still processing my reaction to this revelation, and would welcome comments about yours.

Comments

[will]

I am glad that an innocent man was not executed. Mark Warner deserves praise for doing the testing. I am generally against the death penalty, but I prefer to know that they got it right than an innocent person getting killed.

I hope that this helps further testing and doesnt hinder more DNA testing.

[The Happy Feminist]

I think this is terrible news for anti-death penalty activists because it cements the idea in the public mind that mistakes do not occur in the criminal justice sytem.

On the other hand, I think this will pave the way for more post-execution DNA testing and I think it's only a matter of time before someone is proven to have been mistakenly executed-- at which point I think the tide will turn on the death penalty debate.