[speaker001:] so uh do do you know what the laws of Texas are in regard to capital punishment
[speaker002:] um I have to plead ignorant I really don't know I I think that that uh I think Texas is for it I don't think we've had any instances of it
[speaker001:] I'm sorry would you repeat that please
[speaker002:] pardon
[speaker001:] I'm sorry you you're just a little just a little quiet I just couldn't quite hear what you said
[speaker002:] oh okay sorry I said Texas is is for capital punishment um-hum I don't think we've had a case uh recently but but it is
[speaker001:] uh-huh uh-huh yeah and he I I'm uh I believe in California it is permitted but for a few years they were not doing it I don't think I don't think there's been an execution for a while uh but I'm a little ignorant of it myself I know that there was a
[speaker002:] um-hum
[speaker001:] there was a state supreme court justice who was uh being pounded on in the newspapers because she was overturning
[speaker002:] um-hum
[speaker001:] uh convictions or she was somehow keeping death penalties from being carried out and uh the newspapers were
[speaker002:] um-hum
[speaker001:] giving her a very hard time on that although I always suspected it was something else and that was just something to bang on her about
[speaker002:] yeah could be could be how do you feel about about the capital punishment
[speaker001:] well I I don't to me it seems unnecessary um I think that the sort of person who would be deterred by capital punishment would also be deterred by life in prison um and uh  it seems just with the possibility of making mistakes that uh I would rather opt for life in prison where at least there's a chance the person could uh either change or perhaps even you know contribute to society from prison in some way
[speaker002:] um-hum
[speaker001:] well what do you feeling
[speaker002:] well uh I probably tend to fall come down on the side of of being for it but I I think it
[speaker001:] um-hum
[speaker002:] it it shouldn't be um there should be more safe guards to be sure that that you're you know no mistakes have been made but then I I tend to I tend to come down on the side that if if the laws were were enforced that were on the books you probably wouldn't need it
[speaker001:] right it's uh do you think it would be a deterrent
[speaker002:] well obviously that person wouldn't do it again
[speaker001:] well that is true that is true um
[speaker002:] and it but but I think that like I said if if the laws that are already on on the books that exist were enforced to the letter of the law
[speaker001:] uh-huh
[speaker002:] then I think that in itself would cut down on all kinds of crime
[speaker001:] oh I see you're thinking that if the laws were enforced in general people would be maybe people would be stopped at doing something before they got to the point of
[speaker002:] um-hum
[speaker001:] of killing somebody
[speaker002:] right because I I think too many too many of them walk you know
[speaker001:] um well you know I mean I think I think I'm in agreement with you on this point that hey there's a problem and the solution to the problem isn't whether you kill people or not at the end it's what happens before that uh and I would say that uh
[speaker002:] um-hum
[speaker001:] you know putting more giving more attention to uh child rearing you know as early as that is is it the terms of giving kids a good education and uh sort of a good uh I don't know moral or self esteem sort of backing that would keep them from getting into that sort of life in the first place could make it less necessary also
[speaker002:] well that's true you've got to have the foundation there
[speaker001:] yeah and that's I it seems like people uh focus more on the one end of the system where you're executing someone or not rather than the other end of the system where you're turning out a person who's likely to do something like that or not uh so I think that sort of goes along with what you're saying uh are there certain you know I mean are there certain crimes or do you think there are or should be certain crimes that are liable for it and others not I mean clearly there are but which ones do you think should be liable
[speaker002:] um well I think murder is number one
[speaker001:] um-hum
[speaker002:] uh I I I I tend to believe in an eye for an eye if you if you take a life then you need to lose yours you know not not that you can bring the other person back and and obviously can't
[speaker001:] um-hum um-hum um-hum
[speaker002:] but I see no reason to for you to continue you know and and possibly get out and do it again you know there's too much of
[speaker001:] um-hum
[speaker002:] if you could put them away and be assured that they would stay there you know where they couldn't hurt anybody else that'd be one thing but
[speaker001:] um-hum um-hum
[speaker002:] most of of the uh murderers that go to jail get