by George H. Cullins

About the author: George H. Cullins of Oceanside, California, is the head of Justice Against Crime, an organization that promotes judicial reform.

As citizens of a society, we must control ourselves, and we must have a deterrent from committing criminal acts. The worst criminal act is the willful and malicious taking of another’s life.

The worst crime should have the worst punishment that society can impose, and that is the taking of a murderer’s life expeditiously through our court process.

The taking of a life by society, through a court of law, eliminates the personal vendetta and sends a message that society will not tolerate this criminal action.

Society’s message is very weak today, when we delay the execution by 15 to 20 years, but the message is...