Do you want to know why I'm so vehemently opposed to the death penalty? Beyond the moral argument that the state shouldn't participate in the premeditated murder of its citizens, it comes down to a practical truth: the justice system is not infallible, and the cost of its failure is absolute. Over the decades, officially recognized posthumous exonerations have laid bare how racial bias, coerced confessions, and flawed evidence send innocent people to the gallows and electric chair: - George Stinney Jr. (executed at 14; coerced confession cleared 70 years later) - Joe Arridy (severely disabled; coerced confession, pardoned in 2011) - Lena Baker (self-defense ignored by an all-white jury; pardoned in 2005) - Thomas & Meeks Griffin (framed by the actual killer; cleared in 2009) When the death penalty is carried out, "innocent until proven guilty" loses its safety net. An overturned conviction decades too late is not justice. It is an admission of irreparable harm. We know that isn't the case with Christa Pike. Her conviction rests on undisputed evidence, eyewitnesses, and her own full admission of guilt. But a justice system cannot pick and choose when its finality applies. If it cannot guarantee 100% accuracy across the board, the risk of executing the innocent remains absolute. Bottom line: the state should never have the authority to participate in the premeditated murder of its citizens.