Killing people is always wrong | Richard Bourke | TEDxSydney
Summary
TLDRThe narrator, a capital defense attorney, recounts personal and professional experiences dealing with life and death, including his wife's pregnancy complications during Hurricane Katrina and their work representing clients on death row. The story contrasts the powerlessness felt when faced with natural death versus the choice to kill made by the state through executions. It highlights the emotional and moral complexities of the death penalty, showcasing moments of humanity, compassion, and the profound impact of choosing not to take a life.
Takeaways
- 👶 The speaker and his wife were facing a personal crisis, waiting for an ultrasound to see if their unborn child was alive during a stressful time as Hurricane Katrina refugees.
- ⚖️ Both the speaker and his wife are capital defense attorneys, working tirelessly on a death row case while dealing with their own personal struggles.
- 💔 The speaker describes their powerless feeling as they awaited news about their child, paralleling it with the fight to save their client, Danny, from execution.
- 📞 Despite their efforts, Danny was executed. The speaker received a call from the U.S. Supreme Court's death clerk informing him that the court would not hear Danny's appeal.
- 😔 The speaker reflects on the guilt of losing clients to execution, stating that despite doing everything possible, they were powerless to stop the system from killing.
- 😢 The execution of another client, Jackie, profoundly affected the speaker, especially witnessing Jackie's final moments with his son, who was only allowed to touch his father at the funeral.
- 👨⚕️ The speaker’s father, a doctor, emphasized that witnessing the natural end of life is fundamentally different from watching an execution, as the latter involves a deliberate choice to kill.
- 🙏 The speaker shares a powerful moment of forgiveness when the mother of a murder victim chose to spare the life of her daughter’s killer, demonstrating an act of transformative grace.
- 💡 The speaker describes the death penalty jury selection process as deeply dispiriting, as jurors must be willing to vote for execution to serve. He shares a moving story of a juror who refused the death penalty after witnessing its effect on a victim’s family.
- 🌿 The speaker concludes by reflecting on death as an inevitable part of life but argues that choosing to kill, through the death penalty or otherwise, is wrong.
Q & A
What was the setting of the narrator's story in October 2005?
-In October 2005, the narrator and his wife Christine were sitting in a corridor at a doctor's clinic in Houston, Texas, waiting for an ultrasound to determine if their unborn child was still alive. They were in Houston as refugees after Hurricane Katrina.
What were the narrator and his wife’s professions?
-The narrator and his wife, Christine, were both capital defense attorneys, working for the Louisiana Capital Assistance Center in New Orleans.
Why were they in Houston instead of New Orleans?
-They were in Houston as refugees after Hurricane Katrina devastated New Orleans, making it impossible for them to continue their regular work in Louisiana.
Who was Danny, and what was the narrator doing for him?
-Danny was a client on death row in Texas whose execution was scheduled in a few weeks. The narrator and his wife were working tirelessly to stop his execution and save his life.
What was the outcome of Danny’s case?
-Despite the narrator's efforts, the Supreme Court declined to hear Danny's appeal, and Danny was executed. The narrator visited Danny a few hours before the execution.
What emotional struggle does the narrator describe in relation to his wife’s pregnancy and their work?
-The narrator felt powerless while waiting to learn about their unborn child's fate, contrasting it with the efforts they were making to save their client Danny, whose life could still have been saved. He struggled with the helplessness in both personal and professional contexts.
What was the significance of Jackie’s execution for the narrator?
-Jackie’s execution deeply impacted the narrator, especially as he witnessed Jackie saying 'I love you' to his son before being executed. The event highlighted the cruelty of the death penalty, further solidifying the narrator's opposition to it.
How did the narrator’s father react when they discussed death and execution?
-The narrator’s father, a doctor, had a strong reaction when his son compared watching an execution to seeing patients die. His father emphasized that there is no comparison between a natural death and the act of killing a healthy person through execution.
What transformative experience does the narrator describe involving Chuck and the victim’s family?
-The narrator recalls a powerful moment when the mother of a murder victim chose to forgive Chuck, the man responsible for her daughter’s death. She met with him, hugged him, and fought to spare him from the death penalty, showing great compassion and dignity.
What insight does the narrator gain from his experience with death penalty cases?
-The narrator learned that while death is inevitable, the choice to kill someone is a moral decision. He realized that choosing not to kill, even in cases involving heinous crimes, is a transformative and humane act.
What message does the narrator convey in the conclusion of his speech?
-The narrator concludes by emphasizing that although death is inevitable for everyone, choosing to kill is a deliberate moral decision, and it is wrong to take someone’s life through the death penalty.
Outlines
💔 A Moment of Powerlessness and Fear
The author recounts a difficult time in October 2005 when he and his wife Christine, who were both capital defense attorneys, were awaiting an ultrasound in Houston, Texas to find out if their unborn child was still alive. They were refugees from Hurricane Katrina, living in tough conditions and fighting tirelessly to save a client named Danny from death row in Texas. The waiting period was filled with a sense of powerlessness, as they couldn’t control the outcome of the pregnancy. Despite all their efforts to save Danny’s life, they were ultimately unsuccessful, and he was executed. The author reflects on the helplessness they felt, contrasting it with their ability to fight for Danny, even though it wasn't enough to prevent his death.
💔 The Tragedy of Jackie's Execution
The author describes witnessing the execution of another client, Jackie, in Texas. Jackie had been separated from his son for years, and the state only allowed them to interact through a glass partition during visits. The author notes the cruelty of the situation, as Jackie's son only got to physically touch his father at Jackie's funeral. The execution itself was a somber, horrific event, contrasting the state's routine, indifferent killing with Jackie's final moments of love for his family. The author’s father, a doctor, had warned him about the emotional toll such work could take, emphasizing that watching a planned execution is far more disturbing than witnessing a natural death.
🌱 A Mother’s Forgiveness Saves a Life
The author shares a transformative experience where the mother of a murder victim chose to spare the life of her daughter’s killer, Chuck. This decision came after she met Chuck and saw a video where he expressed remorse for his actions. The mother, who had been advocating for the death penalty, changed her mind after connecting with Chuck in person, eventually fighting to save his life in court. The moment was deeply emotional, with the author describing it as a rare instance of dignity and forgiveness in a painful situation. This experience profoundly impacted the author, illustrating the power of mercy.
🗣️ Jury Selection and Moral Conviction
The author reflects on the frustrating and dehumanizing process of jury selection in death penalty cases, where only those willing to sentence someone to death are allowed to serve. He recalls a poignant moment when a quiet man shared his personal reasons for opposing the death penalty, stemming from witnessing a friend choose forgiveness over revenge. His statement temporarily silenced the pro-death penalty voices in the courtroom. This man’s act of moral courage highlighted the profound impact that choosing not to seek death can have on those involved.
💊 The Contrast Between Death and Dignity
In this final reflection, the author discusses the contrast between natural death and the state-administered death penalty. He recalls how his father, who passed away in Australia, was given a small dose of a sedative to ease his discomfort in his final moments. Days later, the same drug was used in Florida to execute a man, underscoring the disturbing misuse of medical advancements for killing. The author closes by reflecting on how death penalty work has taught him the importance of the choice to kill or not. Despite the inevitability of death, he asserts that choosing to kill is a deliberate and morally wrong action.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Death Penalty
💡Capital Defense Attorney
💡Execution
💡Supreme Court
💡Mercy
💡Hurricane Katrina
💡Criminal Justice System
💡Plea Bargain
💡Natural Death vs. Execution
💡Hope
Highlights
In October 2005, the speaker and his wife Christine were in a Houston clinic, waiting for an ultrasound to determine the fate of their unborn child while also dealing with the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.
Christine and the speaker were capital defense attorneys working to save a client, Danny, from execution in Texas, even as they faced their personal crisis.
The speaker reflects on their powerlessness in the clinic corridor, contrasting it with their tireless efforts to save Danny's life.
Despite their efforts, Danny was executed, and the speaker received a call from the U.S. Supreme Court's death clerk informing them of the rejection of Danny's appeal.
The speaker recalls the emotional burden of watching another client, Jackie, be executed in Texas, highlighting the inhumanity of the death penalty.
Jackie's execution left a profound impact on the speaker, who witnessed Jackie's son touch his father for the first time at the funeral.
The speaker contrasts the natural death of his father, a doctor, with the state-sanctioned killing of healthy prisoners, emphasizing the moral difference.
The speaker shares a poignant story of a mother who forgave Chuck, a man responsible for her daughter's death, and fought to spare him from the death penalty.
The speaker describes the powerful moment in court when the forgiving mother spoke about her daughter's loss and her decision to oppose the death penalty.
During a jury selection in Florida, the speaker was moved by a man who opposed the death penalty because he had seen the liberating effect of forgiveness on a friend who had lost her husband.
The speaker reflects on his father's death, noting the contrast with the state's use of the same drug, midazolam, in executions.
The speaker highlights the dignity and transformation seen in those who choose not to kill, underscoring the potential for change and compassion.
The narrative underscores the speaker's belief that while death is inevitable, the choice to kill is not, and it is inherently wrong.
The speaker concludes by reiterating the moral lesson learned from his experiences: we have no choice about dying, but we can choose not to kill.
The emotional and ethical journey of the speaker, marked by personal loss and professional battles, illustrates the deep conflict between justice and compassion in the context of the death penalty.
Transcripts
in October 2005 my wife Christine and I
were sitting in a corridor in a doctor's
clinic in Houston Texas we were pregnant
with our first child and we were waiting
for an ultrasound to determine whether
or not our child was still alive or had
died
Christina and I our capital defense
attorneys we both work for the Louisiana
capital Assistance Center in New Orleans
we were in Houston as refugees because
of Hurricane Katrina we were sleeping on
a mattress in the floor in a house with
no electricity except an extension cord
passed through from the window of the
house next door and we couldn't do our
regular work so we've taken on the
representation of a client on death row
in Texas whose execution was scheduled
in only a few weeks we were working day
and night on Danny's case trying to find
a way to turn back that execution date
and to stop the state of Texas from
killing him but as hard as we were
working the state of Texas was pushing
back just as hard to make sure that they
could kill Danny Christine had been the
passenger in a car that had been
involved in an accident and was
experiencing cramping and bleeding so we
found ourselves in this corridor in the
stopped is clinical 25 minutes for an
ultrasound and as I waited there for
this very long 25 minutes I was struck
by our powerlessness our unborn child
was either alive or dead and there was
nothing we could do about it
in our work we work tirelessly we leave
no stone unturned we do everything we
can to try and save our clients lives
but now that it was our child there was
nothing we could do
except white a client Danny on the other
hand was definitely alive and we were
fighting very very hard to try to save
his life
in the end we weren't successful I went
and visited with Danny a couple of hours
before they executed him
it's part of the Texas execution
protocol the last visit with one's
lawyer and even then there was hope we
still held it still had an appeal
pending before the United States Supreme
Court and while there wasn't much of a
chance there was a chance that the court
might agree to hear his appeal shortly
after I left that meeting with Danny I
received a call from the court from the
death clerk of the United States Supreme
Court yes that is a real job and the
death clerk told me that the justices
had decided not to consider Danny's
appeal and he asked me should the court
expect any more filings any last-minute
appeals anything else and I had to tell
him no there was nothing more we could
do they would kill Danny I was asked by
a reporter a while ago about the guilt
one must feel when one's client is
executed I thought she was mad I didn't
kill them I don't feel any guilt I did
everything I could to stop them being
killed I told anyone who would listen
not to kill them and takes me back to
that corridor in the doctor's clinic as
we sat there with nothing we could do
one way or the other to save our child's
life Danny was still very much alive and
his life could easily have been saved
not by us but the state of Texas its
populous its politicians the people who
made up its criminal justice system they
could have saved Danny's life easily
simply by choosing not to kill him a
couple of years earlier I had witnessed
the execution of one of my clients in
Texas
as I watched them kill Jackie I stood
next to his sister and his 18 month old
son a Jackie son had been 2 years old
when Jackie got locked up I wasn't yet
licensed to practice in Texas but was
working 20 hours a day alongside a
volunteer from reprieve Australia
working day and night digging up new
evidence drafting legal pleadings
spending time with Jackie and his family
we raised money to fly his son back to
Texas so he could visit with his father
though when they visited the state of
Texas wouldn't allow them to have a
contact is it they had to speak on a
phone reaching out to touch the
Plexiglas that was between them it
wasn't until we went to Jackie's funeral
that his son was able to reach out and
touch his father for the first time in
so very long
Jackie's execution was a horrible event
there's a lot of high talk about the
death penalty and hang him high that
sort of thing but there's a big
difference between talk and taking a
defenseless prisoner and killing them
whether done with bloodthirsty relish or
was professional indifference the
carrying out of an execution is a wholly
repugnant spectacle but Jackie didn't
curse his executioner's or rail against
them he just turned his head to the side
and mouthed the words I love you to his
son a while later I was back in
Australia visiting my father my dad had
been a doctor throughout his
professional life working in an
old-style community-based medical clinic
and he was worried about me he was
worried about the toll of the work and
particularly having witnessed this
execution and I said to him don't worry
I'm I'm okay
and I said besides dad you'd seen
hundreds of your patients die no I
should say it's not the Derb was that
bad a doctor
we've been doing it for a long time and
he had a lot of old clients and
terminally ill clients but but when I
said that to him he had this visible
visceral reaction and he said in the
most emphatic tones there is no
comparison between watching the natural
end of a human life and watching an
otherwise healthy person be strapped to
a table and kill and of course he was
quite correct we all die but the choice
to kill transforms that event into
something different something much
darker one of the great things though
about doing death penalty work is that
it's not all dark you also get to meet
people who choose not to kill and that
also is transformative several years ago
I was helping on a case er a triple
homicide with a fourth victim who'd
survived only because he played dead and
it was a drug thing and I didn't know
Chuck at the time of the crime but when
I came to meet him he was a kind and
remorseful and spiritual man and we were
trying to negotiate a plea in Chuck's
case that would spare him the death
penalty result in a penalty less than
death and the key to it was having the
victim's families agree to a sentence
less than death we got to a point where
all of the families but one had agreed
and the one was the mother of the
youngest victim a 17 year old girl who
his last words were please don't shoot
me I'm pregnant
and her mother felt that she owed it to
her daughter to push for the harshest
penalty available we had a member of the
defense team talking to her and
discussing this with her and to help her
understand who Chuck was we filmed a
video of him introducing himself and
apologizing for what had happened she
watched the video
and she agreed to meet Chuck they met in
a room at the local jail just the two of
them no guards no lawyers no rules about
what she could ask him or what questions
he would answer or what he would say and
when the door opened at the end of the
visit she hugged him
she said I'm going to fight for you
Chuck and when we went to court for
Chuck's plea and sentence she was there
and she stood up and she addressed the
court and she spoke about her daughter
and she spoke about her loss and she
spoke about her pain but she also spoke
about Chuck and her desire that he not
received the death penalty
it was a moment of unparalleled dignity
and beauty I I really don't have the
words to describe what it was like to be
there in that courtroom and watch this
woman who had suffered so much pain lay
that down and choose to spare Chuck's
life I said in the public gallery with
tears streaming down my face it was a
moment for me that had been foreshadowed
in a case earlier a year or so earlier
in Florida we were in jury selection
it's a very important part of a death
penalty case because apart from anything
else the jury decides whether to vote to
have your client killed or not in
America death penalty cases jury
selection is a bizarre and dispiriting
process you can't serve on the jury
unless you say that you will be willing
to sentence the defendant to death if
you say you would not choose the death
penalty you are sent home as unfit to
serve and so you sit in the courtroom
full of prospective jurors and juror
after juror gets the microphone and
looks across the courtroom at your
client and says to the judge yes I'd be
willing I'd be willing to vote to kill
him and as we did this some of us a very
long day
people were becoming more restive and
the pro-death jurors were starting to
mock those few jurors who expressed
opposition to the death penalty and the
microphone made its way over to the side
of the courtroom weathers a small
unassuming looking man was sitting and
he told the judge that for personal
reasons he could never vote for the
death penalty and it was there was a lot
of mumbling and murmuring in the
courtroom but he spoke with such a quiet
dignity that everyone quieten down and
listen to what he had to say and what he
told us was that a friend of his had
suffered through the murder of her
husband and he had supported her in her
grief and ultimately she had chosen not
to seek the death penalty for her
husband's killer and what he said was
that when he saw how that liberated her
soul he could never vote for death and
he quietly handed back the microphone
and sat down and for a time in that
courtroom those pro-death voices were
loud in the wake of what he'd said my
father died about 18 months ago I was
fortunate enough to be able to get back
to Australia to be with him at the end
and was with him until the very end and
in that final day as his protect
breathing became more uncomfortable he
was given a very small dose of a
sedative midazolam just to make him more
comfortable after the funeral I returned
to the United States and a few days
later the state of Florida executed a
man in part by giving him a massive
overdose of midazolam the drug my father
had been given as part of his palliative
care people are still choosing to kill
sometimes even choosing to kill with
drugs invented to save lives and ease
suffering Chuck lived my father died
Jackie and Danny died
my daughter survived doing this work
I've learned something that I thought
that I already knew we are all going to
die and we have no choice about that but
we do get to choose whether to kill or
not and it's wrong to kill people thank
you very much
Voir Plus de Vidéos Connexes
5.0 / 5 (0 votes)