My immediate visceral reaction to such stories of rape is that convicted brutal should be castrated with a cheese grater slowly. A little bit every day. Never let the wound heal. Grate a little bit off every day. Let them beg for death but don't give it to them.
But then I calm down and ask myself. Does it bring back dead victims? No. Does it heal loved ones and family? Maybe. It depends. Does it prevent rape? Nope. Does it make women feel safer? Nope. Does it make women feel safe to report rape and sexual assault? Nope. Does it prevent men from viewing women as sexual objects? Nope. Does it make men understand that women don't owe them anything? Nope. Does it make men understand that consent is of utmost importance? Nope.
What is the point then? Nothing other than us basking in moral righteousness. Real lasting change will take a lot of time.
I am not opposed to the death sentence at all. Some criminals can never be rehabilitated. I think the death sentence is better than the system wasting resources on sustaining brutal mass murderers and rapists.
At the same time, I cannot condone lynching, torture, etc - no matter how much someone deserves it. Our justice system is not perfect. Law enforcement has a tendency to scapegoat people to appease bloodthirsty public who just want someone to blame. The United States has a history of black men being incarcerated for rape - because white society could not bear white women having consensual relationships with black men. Since the discovery of DNA evidence literally thousands of men incarcerated for rape have been acquitted.
So while I do not oppose the death penalty, I do not trust the criminal justice system to always make the right choice. Should an innocent person be humanely sentenced to death - I would be upset, but I can live with it. Should an innocent person be lynched/tortured to death, I don't think that is right for social conscience.
Why not tackle important criminal justice reforms instead? Mandatory sensitivity training for officers on how to investigate sex crimes. Better oversight to prevent officers from demeaning and demoralizing victims. Rape kit reform to comply with international standards and the abolition of the two-finger test. Criminalize marital rape. Actually implement fast track courts for rape and sexual assault. Rape investigation oversight to prevent abuse of power and scapegoating.
What's the point of harsher punishment if most rape is not reported? And of that is reported most don't get investigated. And those that get investigated, most don't go to court. And of those that go to court, most victims cannot mentally cope with trial. And of those victims that are resilient, most cases don't end in conviction. I'd rather focus on improving the reporting and investigation of ALL RAPES (not just ones that make headlines).
Once we are confident on our ability to report, investigate, and prosecute ALL CASES OF RAPE quickly and fairly - then lets look at torture options for heinous rapists.
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