Justice for Jessica........

[AchtungBono]

An hour ago I watched transfixed as the Florida court judge sentenced John Couey to die for the murder of 9 year old Jessica Lunsford.

I listened in disbelief which then turned to horror as the judge described in graphic detail how Jessica was abducted, held captive and then buried alive.

Couey lied to Jessica, told her that he was taking her back home, told her to get into a plastic bag. He tied her wrists with wire, put her in the bag with her stuffed dolphin and then knotted over her head. He then place another bag over her head and knotted it on the bottom. After digging a hole, he placed her in it...still alive....and very slowly shoveled the dirt over the bags - leaving her alone to slowly suffocate.

What were her last thoughts as the oxygen supply slowly ran out? Was she hoping someone would find her? Was she thinking about the mother she would never be? We'll never know.

What we DO know is that two small holes were poked into the plastic bags, indicating that Jessica tried to dig herself out of what was slowly becoming her living tomb.....but all in vein.....she died alone, in the dirt, in the dark.........

I watched the face of her father, Mark Lunsford, as one by one the judge read out the facts in the case. Mark Lunsford's face gave no sign of the inner turmoil he must have been feeling while sitting only a few feet away from this piece of filth who took his daughter's innocence by raping her, and then took her life by burying her alive. Mark Lunsford to me is a hero and truly a brave man to be able to control his emotions, particularly when the judge went into the details of his daughter's horrible death.

Before sentencing Couey (and I'm disgusted even to type his name), the judge also laid out the defence claims of "midigating" circumstances - such as Couey being born prematurely, born with floppy ears, and being abused as a child....to that I say to him: FUCK YOU!! Why should you kill a 9 year old child just because you were born with floppy ears?? Why should you rape a 9 year old child because your mother was 16 when you were born??? What does any of this have to do with what you did????

Tears rolled down my cheek as the TV screen showed pictures of Jessica smiling and laughing and I felt overwhelming sadness as I saw Mark Lunsford's face. My sadness turned to outrage when the camera moved to the lawyers sitting next to this vile criminal. It totally boggled the mind that anyone could even THINK of defending this abominable excuse for a human being.

So, in closing, John Couey will be taken to a Florida jail to await execution. Unfortunately, his death will be a lot easier than the death he inflicted on Jessica.

All I can say is good riddance to very bad rubbish and I hope this will give Mark Lunsford closure and a sense that justice has been served and his daughter's death has been avenged.

Rest in peace Jessica.

+++++

From the Yahoo News website:





INVERNESS, Fla. - A convicted sex offender was sentenced Friday to death for kidnapping 9-year-old Jessica Lunsford, raping her and burying her alive in his yard.

John Evander Couey looked straight ahead as Circuit Judge Ric Howard told him he should be executed for the 2005 crimes that led to new laws in many states cracking down on convicted sex offenders.

Sheriff's deputies hustled the handcuffed inmate out of the crowded courtroom.

The girl's father, Mark Lunsford, teared up as he listened to the judge read a detailed history of the case for nearly an hour. He hugged relatives after the sentence was read.

Outside court, Lunsford had a message for Couey: "Skip all these appeals. Take your punishment."

The jury that convicted Couey in March recommended 10-2 that he die for his crimes, but the decision was left to Howard.

An attorney for Couey, 49, had argued that he couldn't legally be executed because he is mentally retarded, but Howard brushed aside that claim in a strongly worded ruling earlier this month. Mentally retarded people cannot be executed under a 2002 U.S. Supreme Court decision.

The jury convicted Couey of taking the girl in February 2005 from her bedroom to his nearby trailer, sparking a massive search. The third-grader's body was found about three weeks after she disappeared in a grave in Couey's yard, about 150 yards from her own home.

Couey, already a convicted sex offender when he committed the crime, was arrested in Georgia and confessed to the killing. That confession was thrown out as evidence because Couey did not have a lawyer present.

Despite the confession being tossed, Couey incriminated himself other times. Jail guards and investigators testified that he repeatedly admitted details of the slaying after his arrest, insisting that he hadn't meant to kill the third-grader but panicked during an intense, nationally publicized police search.

Prosecutors also had overwhelming physical evidence, including DNA from the girl's blood and Couey's semen on a mattress in his room as well as her fingerprints in a closet where investigators said she was hidden.

Couey has a criminal record that includes 24 burglary arrests, carrying a concealed weapon and indecent exposure. He was designated a sex offender for exposing himself to a 5-year-old girl in 1991.

[JCOSTER]

^ Jessica was from my town at one time and her dad from what I understand still lives here.

I say that he should be buried alive the same way she was, tortured and raped too. Good riddence for crap like him. Its just one left we have to worry about.

And you know the bullshit of unfortunate events in your childhood is crap too. Almost everyone in this world has had an unfortunate story or wasn't delt a full deck to play with when they were born.

I am very over protective of my kids, from our school district we are informed by Megans Law the offenders that have been recently listed.

All I can say is I must recieve a list for the people on Long Island every other week with about 5-10 offenders on the list.

It is truly disgusting when every town on Long Island has an offender listed living there.

[Caroni]

That is so sad, but at least her family found justice :Pray: I´m not a bigt fan of Death sentence but... I don´t know...

[BVS]

A horrific death, no question about that.

But why post this? Where the discussion? Is this just an excuse for yet another DP debate?

[dazzlingamy]

What a horrible horrible thing poor little girl

It is shocking JC just to see how many sex offenders there are out there - i may not be totally for a public sex offenders list, but I do think that sometimes, being locked up for a looooooong time is better then letting them out just for them to fuck it all up again!

[martha]

Originally posted by JCOSTER
I say that he should be buried alive the same way she was, tortured and raped too.

So you'll become just like him?

[JCOSTER]

No, mine is about justice not being evil.

[deep]

There is no justice for Jessica or her family

life for the most part, is not fair


people that commit horrible crimes should be dealt with

people that support executions (justified killing of someone)

have a lot in common with the people they want executed -

the belief that they have the right to decide if one lives or dies

[indra]

Originally posted by JCOSTER
No, mine is about justice not being evil.

That's not justice, it's revenge.

[U2democrat]

Originally posted by deep
There is no justice for Jessica or her family

life for the most part, is not fair


people that commit horrible crimes should be dealt with

people that support executions (justified killing of someone)

have a lot in common with the people they want executed -

the belief that they have the right to decide if one lives or dies

I sadly agree.

[JCOSTER]

So be it, but if it where my child....words cannot explain the punishment I would want them to have.

If you live in an area where they are placing registered offenders N,S, E, W its a little nerve racking when you have kid. One in the area is enough but I am talking about level 1-3 which is bad enough.

Since July 25th I have recieved notices listing 39 offenders on Long Island and around my area.

[JCOSTER]

Why should this man live in prison for the rest of his life? Get a degree, education, medical care? He will be put to rest more peacefully than Jessica would have even in her old age.

That's not fair.

This is something I feel strongly about. I'm sorry if it upsets people or makes them think of me differently. Maybe everyone else is just a better person than I am.

[AchtungBono]

Originally posted by BonoVoxSupastar
A horrific death, no question about that.

But why post this? Where the discussion? Is this just an excuse for yet another DP debate?

Actually no BVS....I posted this as an outlet for my feelings. I just had to log on to this board and free my mind (no pun intended) from the outrage and sorrow I felt.

I know that you're against the death penalty and I didn't start this thread to start any arguments for or against - I just wanted to write down my thoughts - which is what this board is for.

Of course I welcome a discussion if anyone would care to comment.

[U2democrat]

Killing him will not bring her back. It only adds to the body count.

Nothing we can do here will bring justice to the horrible act he committed, so he should sit in a cell the rest of his life and think about what he did.

[JCOSTER]

Originally posted by U2democrat
Killing him will not bring her back. It only adds to the body count.

Nothing we can do here will bring justice to the horrible act he committed, so he should sit in a cell the rest of his life and think about what he did.

People like that don't think about what they did, they think about how they can get out and do it again.

[U2democrat]

So keep him locked up without parole.


Killing him will not make anyone feel any better. They will not find peace in their hearts and minds after he is gone, there will always be the anguish.

What he did was awful and disgusting and it sends knots in my stomach. Just because he chose to take a life does not make it right that we should make the same choice.

[diamond]

Originally posted by deep
There is no justice for Jessica or her family



people that support executions (justified killing of someone)

have a lot in common with the people they want executed -

Most would agree with you here, which is no suprise.
Most Americans and fair minded people would see your post as a strange assesment.

First off, an execution is not a "justified killing of someone".

It is execution of a guilty person who snuffed out a young innocent child.

Other than another death occurs, there are no similaraties.

To suggest otherwise is twisted.



dbs

[U2democrat]

I just can't bring myself to condemn another persons life and say "That person deserves to die"


As deep said life is not fair, we learn this at an early age, and for those of us who believe in some sort of higher power will say it's not up to us to deliver justice for such a horrendous offense.

[diamond]

U2 Democrat see my post above and being a minister's daughter how would you interpret Mark 9:42?

dbs

[diamond]

See also Matt 18:6