NCJ Number
158913
Date Published
1995
Length
0 pages
Annotation
Using interviews with family members of murder victims and interpretive commentary, this video argues for the abolition of capital punishment based upon the Christian concept of forgiveness and the affirmation of the value of each human life.
Abstract
The video format consists primarily of personal comments by the family members in interviews or in speeches they have given before various groups. The family members include SueZann Bosler, a stabbing victim whose father was fatally stabbed in the same incident by an intruder into their home; Bill Pelke, grandson of a woman stabbed to death by a teenage girl in a robbery; Marietta Jaeger, the mother of a young girl who was kidnapped and murdered while on a family outing; and Bernice King, the daughter of the late Martin Luther King, Jr. In all these instances the family members oppose the death penalty for the murderers, based upon the Christian perspective of forgiveness and the value of each human life. These family members and others who appear on the video as opponents of capital punishment argue that capital punishment does not reflect justice as viewed within Christian theology. The Christian view of justice is the restoration and healing of both the offender and the victim. As an alternative to capital punishment, some suggest life in prison without the possibility of parole while receiving rehabilitative services. A discussion guide accompanies the video.