Save Linda Carty

One of the things that surprised me when I first started reading regularly here, were the number of burglaries in the UK that occured when the thieves knew someone was home! And they appeared not to care! I was absolutely astounded. That would never or rarely happen where I live.

 

The only conclusion I can draw is that Sheffield burglars are emboldened because they know most people don't have a gun. Here, you never know who has a gun.

Too true it wouldn't happen here. Once a burglar enters my home and I'm there his body and soul belong to me

Harleyman, please clear your inbox

I'll get around to that Rupert. Right now though I can only make very short posts as that great big wind storm we had a couple of nights ago has made a real mess around the place and I'm taking a short break between cleaning up

There's a bar which straddles the Tennessee/ Georgia state border. The bar area is in Tennessee but if you go to the rear of the bar to the gents toilet you are in a "dry" (no alcohol allowed) county in the state of Georgia. A blue line drawn across the floor between the bar and the gents denotes the exact border bwtween the two states. If you were to go to the gents carrying a beer bought at the bar you could technically be breaking the law once you cross that blue line.

Why do I say this? Because laws vary from one state to another. If you commit murder in Texas or Florida you are more likely to end up on death row than say in Vermont where there's no such place. Linda Carty plotted to kidnap another woman's baby and it resulted in the death of the mother in a state where a conviction for first degree murder carries the death penalty.

I feel no sympathy for the woman. I've heard and read about some horrible brutal senseless murders during the years I've lived here.

In the case of little Jessica Lunsford aged 9 who was kidnapped, raped then buried alive by a sick monster named Cooey in Florida and subsequently sentenced to death I would have been quite happy to stand outside the prison and break open a bottle of cheap champagne when it was announced that he had paid the penalty. Happily, as it turned out Cooey died of natural causes beforehand.

American prisons are overcrowded enough already without adding to the problem by keeping such people alive at taxpayer expense.

There's a bar which straddles the Tennessee/ Georgia state border. The bar area is in Tennessee but if you go to the rear of the bar to the gents toilet you are in a "dry" (no alcohol allowed) county in the state of Georgia. A blue line drawn across the floor between the bar and the gents denotes the exact border bwtween the two states. If you were to go to the gents carrying a beer bought at the bar you could technically be breaking the law once you cross that blue line.

I'm not sure what this has to do with anything that we were discussing.

Why do I say this? Because laws vary from one state to another. If you commit murder in Texas or Florida you are more likely to end up on death row than say in Vermont where there's no such place.

Are you having a laugh?

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Incidentally the murder rate in Vermont is nearly 5 times less than in Texas or Florida (/100k people), which kind of disturbs what I think you were trying to argue.

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Linda Carty plotted to kidnap another woman's baby and it resulted in the death of the mother in a state where a conviction for first degree murder carries the death penalty.

I feel no sympathy for the woman. I've heard and read about some horrible brutal senseless murders during the years I've lived here.

In the case of little Jessica Lunsford aged 9 who was kidnapped, raped then buried alive by a sick monster named Cooey in Florida and subsequently sentenced to death I would have been quite happy to stand outside the prison and break open a bottle of cheap champagne when it was announced that he had paid the penalty. Happily, as it turned out Cooey died of natural causes beforehand.

And the brutal horrific case of Jessica has what to do with this case?

American prisons are overcrowded enough already without adding to the problem by keeping such people alive at taxpayer expense.

I'm sure that you've seen all the evidence that your 'execution laws cost more than life incarceration', and has been done enough before.

One of the things that surprised me when I first started reading regularly here, were the number of burglaries in the UK that occured when the thieves knew someone was home! And they appeared not to care! I was absolutely astounded. That would never or rarely happen where I live.

 

The only conclusion I can draw is that Sheffield burglars are emboldened because they know most people don't have a gun. Here, you never know who has a gun.

I don't own a gun. I haven't owned a gun for a while. Before that, I owned many. I ran a small-bore club (owned about 80 on that certificate and fired some hundreds of rounds a week.) I was a target rifle shooter (shot for the Air Force) and shot full-bore pistol as the team captain for my unit. I probably fired 2-300 rounds a week up until 1988, when I moved to the US.

I lived in New Mexico. The land of 'Billy the Kid' Everybody and his dog (apart from Rupert) had a gun! I was asked by a British (from Cambridge) friend:" Do you have a gun in your car?"

"No."

"Why not?"

"Because if I fire at somebody I do not miss."

"But what happens if you are stopped at a traffic light and somebody fires at you?"

"He will probably miss. I'll take the chance. If I fired back, I wouldn't miss and it would take ages to explain to APD why I shot him dead."

"Oh."

I've owned guns since I was a small child. (I learnt to shoot with a .22 rifle when I was about 6.) I'm used to guns, I use them for sport (target shooting.)

I'm also retired military. Ordinarily, military personnel do not see the direct results of what they do, but (because you don't really want a bunch of plonkers who think they're 'John Wayne') they do see some pretty detailed photographs of what high-velocity weapons do. Often.

It is possible that some of the people I fired at in anger ended up looking like the photos I saw. I would prefer not to do that to people.

I no longer own a weapon. I don't need one. I live in a neighbourhood which is probably heavily armed. Should you wish to invade my house, I'll cheat. I'll let my neighbours blow your arse off on the way out.

If you get out.

Handguns are brilliant at between 15 and 20 ft. At 3 feet, they're a bloody liability. Knives and hands alone are far better.

After watching the documentary on Lynda Carty I didn't particularly warm to her and she didn't seem to plead her case very well. However, the evidence pointing her towards the murder of Joana Rodriguez is very minimal. The only thing evidence placing her at the scene of the crime is her car and thugs who were granted shorter sentences for turning Lynda in. The was NO forensic evidence. Even if there is a chance that she did commit this crime, the case was not handled properly. I think the only reason why there is so much discussion in this case is because it was not handled properly and she was not given the defence which any person would deserve in any civilised state.

She shouldn't be sent to death for a crime which is not 100% proven.

I thought this was about Linda Carter (of 'Wonder Woman' fame).