Did Bundy deserve the death penalty?
i'm in two minds about this... i just dunno...i just think underneath, he may have been a good guy.
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MovieChat Forums > Ted Bundy (2002) Discussion > Did Bundy deserve the death penalty?
I thought he was cool as hell, I was surprised how people could think otherwise - I guess I can't sympathize since noone in my family has went through that, but I still think the death row guys out in florida are bigger sadists! They are legal serial killers, and I bet they love what they do. They should die for their sadistic diseases!!
Anyway - I think his greatest mistake was not planning to murder the priest that visited him, he might've gotten a new trial.
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Disgusting people like him deserve to suffer, no question about it, but if you want to maximize his suffering, lock him up for the rest of his life. The death penalty really is more trouble than it is worth. DNA evidence has acquitted more than 100 death row inmates. If you execute Muslim terrorists, you martyr them and inspire more youth to become terrorists. If you execute men like Ted Bundy or Richard Allen Davis, you put them out of their misery. Prison is hell, and that is really the best way to punish a criminal.
I have alway thought of renting this movie, but I would just be too embarassed.
Ugh. Yes, you are a master of morals. "Let's make him suffer! Sure, he may have been wrongfully convicted, but we're going to assume that every single person is guilty and beat the *beep* outta them regularly!"
Yeah. How about no? I prefer intelligence, humanity, logic, common sense, etc. etc. etc.
"Sure, he may have been wrongfully convicted..."
Huh? What? Who???
No way. The teeth marks secured his fate, no doubt about it. He was guilty as all hell. Besides, he confessed to numerous murders. Just not the ones in Florida.
I agree with most of you. Sometimes the death penalty is too easy. I always believe that rapist/murderers, especially those who committ crimes against children like Ted did, should be placed in general population at a prison, and have their crimes tatooed on their forehead.
Prisons have a way of administering justice that we don't.
I don't know if this has been touched on in this thread already, but Ted Bundy had what is (today)commonly referred to as an anti-social personality disorder and although he could "function" in society, his relationships existed only in facade and were created exclusively to generate opportunities that he believed would have favorable results for him.
He used people and had little to no understanding or empathy towards them. So technically, he was insane...but does that constitute life in prison vs. the death penalty? Bear in mind that there is no widely accepted treatment for individuals with this disorder and there is little doubt that he would've always been a threat to society as long as he was alive. Does the fact that a person cannot control his/her actions warrant carte blanche disregard for the laws and the consequences therein that those who can control their emotions and actions have to abide and accept? Or is the threat to society the determining factor? It appears that the judicial system of that time period has made their decision, either because there was a different understanding of psychology at that time or, if for no other reason, to avoid the public out lash that would have occurred if the people didn't get their "Bundy Burgers" in a timely fashion.
i'm honestly glad he's dead not just because he killed innocent people for no reason but just for the fact that he now knows how it feels to die. I was happy that he got the death sentance. And i love how he suffered sorry if i sound like an insenctive biatch, but i think he deffently deserved what he got! i just wish they starved him or something just to make him pay!
shareTed Bundy, in my eyes, did indeed deserve to die. He didn't deserve the electric chair; that was too good for him. Though only he knew the true number of women he killed, I personally think he is responsible for 136 deaths. In any case, I can assure you that Ted was not a "good guy". I have spoken to Bob Keppell, a detective who has an intimate knowledge of the case. Ted Bundy is a pshychopath. And no, by legal and technical definitions, psychopaths are not insane. Do not confuse this term with psychotic, this is what is used to describe the mentally ill. A psychopath is a person who is extremely antisocial and simply has no respect for the law or wellbeing of others. Pshychopaths are highly manipulative people. Ted Bundy was simply putting on a show to convince the court and public that he did not deserve to die. If one analyzes Ted's crimes and confessions closely, it becomes obvious that the only remorse Ted had was over being caught. He was not actually sad that he had killed any of these girls. Though perhaps the circumstances surrounding his crimes would be more clear had they kept him alive, Ted was put to death so that he would not win his game. As many of you know, Ted Bundy did work with law enforcement officers on the Green River Killings case, but this was mainly so he could be close to a murder spree, and get off on it. I personally do not think that anyone who believes Ted Bundy deserved to live is crazy, but rather fell for his act.
share"I personally do not think that anyone who believes Ted Bundy deserved to live is crazy, but rather fell for his act".
So people fell for his act? It's not about that! It's not even about Bundy. It's about the general idea of the death sentence. It just shouldn't exist at all.
BTW, I think most people know what a psychopath is. And: "Do not confuse this term with psychotic, this is what is used to describe the mentally ill". So you say every person who's mentally ill is psychotic? You do know that not every mental illness is the same as the other right? Perhaps you should do some research before you lecture everyone about legal and technical definitions.
Perhaps mentally ill is not neccesarily the correct term. I have always had difficulties describing it, but it would be someone like William Herbert Mullin, or the type of person that David Berkowitz tried to pass himself off as. Excuse my mistake.
As for the death sentence, it is a matter of opinion, so I will not fight anyone on it. However, I personally think it is unjust that a person who brutally murderes another should be allowed to live, at the expense of taxpayes, in an environment where, restricted though it may be, he or she will still treated very well. My response that you have quoted was not directed at the question of whether the death penalty should exist, but rather, whether or not Ted Bundy was a "good guy". Perhaps, before you go lecturing me, you ought to read Bob Keppel's book about his interaction with Ted Bundy, The Riverman.
And, to Jhill, for what it's worth, I believe it is fairly well publicized that Bundy placed knives in a relative's bed at the age of three.
And, to Jhill, for what it's worth, I believe it is fairly well publicized that Bundy placed knives in a relative's bed at the age of three.
It's worth a lot, because it means that even in his developmental stages Bundy had these types of urges, so maybe it wasn't just an "act", but he really was born with the disorder and maybe wasn't as responsible as it would appear. Through time he learned to become a more efficient manipulator, but he appears to have had the lack of conscience and empathy from a very early age. If this is the case (now assuming that there must be some kind of Neuropsychological underpinning to Bundy's disorder) what really separates him from someone with a low I.Q.? Intelligence? Just because Bundy knew what he was doing (killing)may not be reason enough to sentence him to death if it is determined that he couldn't comprehend that it was wrong and couldn't abide and understand the importance behind the social norms against murder.
Maybe the acts that he committed and the continued threat to society is reason enough to put him to death without consideration for the condition that allowed him to commit crimes in the fashion he did (it appears it was reason enough to the parties that sentenced him at least).
Truth is, I really don't know that much about Ted Bundy specifically(I'm not even sure what lead me to this thread :-)But you have peaked my interest in Keppel's book and I plan to check it out. Thanks.
P.S. I don't have the time to research it now, but I seem to recall that with the legal system set up in the fashion it is now, taxpayers actually pay more for someone to be put to death than they do to keep them in prison (because of appeals and red tape). If this is true, then it's a real shame. share
"I don't have the time to research it now, but I seem to recall that with the legal system set up in the fashion it is now, taxpayers actually pay more for someone to be put to death than they do to keep them in prison (because of appeals and red tape). If this is true, then it's a real shame."
Yep. Whether or not he deserved it is a matter of opinion. I'm against the taking of any life in my name, but I don't feel one bit sorry for Ted because in the end, if he hadn't killed, he wouldn't have ended up where he did. It cost Florida taxpayers $6 million dollars to execute Ted, if he had gotten life without parole, feeding him and housing him wouldn't have cost no where near that much. Plus, if he'd have been put in with the general population, he'd have been a marked man, and would eventually been killed like Jeffrey Dahmer. Now there's justice! Funny thing, Ted was offered a sentence of life without parole in exchange for a guilty plea. He turned it down thinking he'd beat it, but his teeth marks got him a death sentence.
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A little off subject, but "Psychopath" isn't a registered term in any of the recent DSMs (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders) so it's really a moot point as far as diagnosis goes (although there is talk it may be touched on in DSM-V). Nevertheless, I find it interesting that the one of the lead detectives referred to him as this because the term "psychopath" infers that Bundy was born with the disorder, while "sociopath" infers that he was environmentally affected in a fashion (usually parental relations) that created the monster that he was. Obviously, the detective wouldn't know this, but it's interesting to think that it's possible from a Neuropsychological p.o.v. that an individual could be born without a conscience or empathy of any kind towards others.
The debate is still on as to rather people with APD or who express sociopathy (or psychopathy, if necessary) are "insane" (probably wasn't the best term to use, my fault) or not...Are they crazy? or just cruel? The truth is little is understood about it even today. The next logical question (assuming the death penalty is commonly accepted as an ethical punishment for people who commit these types of crimes) is, should someone who was born with a disorder that prevents him/her from understanding the nature of social norms and abiding by them (part of the widely accepted "public" definition of psychopathy) deserving of the same punishment as others who do?
I am really agaisnt the death penalty, but after seeing what Bundy did I think he deserved it. If the death row gaurds really stuck that much cotton up his cornhole before his excecution, then I think he deserved every minute of it, since he did much worse to his female victims.
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