Results: Do the crime, do the time!

Dimitrios Pagourtzis, age 17, shot and killed 8 students, 2 teachers, injuring 13 others at high school in Santa Fe, Texas. Because he is 17 years old, he is ineligible for the death penalty. If he is found guilty (Fox, CNN) "It's life in prison with the possibility of parole because of his age". I tried to find his exact age and was unsuccessful. However, in Texas, as of December 31, 2004, 71 persons were on death row for juvenile crimes. These 71 condemned juveniles constituted about 2% of the total death row population of 3,487. Although all were ages 16 or 17 at the time of their crimes, their current ages range from 18 to 43. They were under death sentences in 12 different states and had been on death row from 4 months to 24 years. Texas had by far the largest death row for juvenile offenders, holding 29 (40%) of the national total of 72 juvenile offenders. All of the juvenile offenders who were on death row are male and had been convicted and sentenced to death for murder. Do you believe that Dimitrios Pagourtzis should also be eligible for the death penalty?

It turns out, that in 2005 high court ruling that bans execution of criminals younger than 18 and a 2012 ruling about juveniles facing life in prison mean that Pagourtzis could be up for parole after 40 years. "The courts ruled based on the idea that those 17 and younger don't have the cognitive development to appreciate right from wrong," said Michael Radelet, a University of Colorado at Boulder sociology professor who has testified in more than 75 death-penalty cases. "Cases like this that are especially violent and an enigma make some people think they are more deserving of death, but the ruling is about the development of the juvenile brain." Do you agree with this?

I tried to find his exact age, because of this question: Should there be a more detailed age requirement? In other words, not eligible for the death penalty if between the ages of 17 years and 17 years and 6 months, but eligible if older than 17 years and 6 months?

This past Monday a female police officer, in Baltimore, was run down by a 16 year old in a Jeep. According to CBS Baltimore, the 16 year old will be charged as an adult, however the state of Maryland has abolished the death penalty, and therefore this is not an option for those who are guilty of killing law enforcement officers. Do you believe that with the amount of law enforcement killings that the death penalty should remain intact for those who are found guilty of these heinous crimes?

Do you believe, that the same considerations should apply for K-9 Officers?

Would you be willing to sign a petition that strengthens the laws regarding crimes towards law enforcement officers, including K-9s?