Killing people is always wrong | Richard Bourke | TEDxSydney

Summary

The 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.