If I offended you, I apologize.
I simply don't see how any human can have a good conscience when he claims the power to end the life of another human being. I mean, how can you live with it? Do you simply don't care and say "well, people say it's legal and justified, so it doesn't matter"? Or do you think being offended and hurt gives you that right?
How can any human being claim the right to end the life of another, a gift God has given both of you?
And I don't say this to attack or offend you, I am seriously asking these questions.
Firstly, I don't share the view on God, so I can't necessarily answer you in that regard. I'm not trying to avoid that question, I just don't have an answer from a religious stand point.
As to the rest. I don't celebrate the fact that Texas has the highest rate of death penalty convictions in the country, or that we utilize it more often than any other state. I don't think that really shows any sort of capability in punishing crime, necessarily.
My view is this: If PersonX maliciously, intentionally, and knowingly takes action to end the life of another in the process of criminal endeavors, that person has voluntarily forfeited their own right to life. If PersonX does so repeatedly, as with a serial killer or career criminal who kills in the commission of other crimes, I feel even more strongly. In the case of the career killer, I advocate strongly for the death penalty. Why? Because most research indicates that you cannot rehabilitate somebody who kills repeatedly. If they can serve no positive purpose to society, and if their existence begets pain, suffering, and extraneous cost from those who are working to better society, then we are more merciful towards the innocent by ending the life of the killer.
On the other hand, we recently had a case here were several guys robbed a man and then shoved him into the path of an oncoming train, resulting in the man's death. I would not support the death penalty for these guys, regardless of age, because they had no prior criminal record of any kind, and it is quite possible that these guys could be rehabilitated, counselled, and converted into more compassionate members of society.
It is a delicate balance, to be sure. But sometimes we have to emphasize logic over our own "guilt". What action will ultimately best serve all parties involved? Are we better served by letting the career killer live? How so?
Would I want somebody who killed my father to face the death penalty? It really depends. Had that person killed before? Was there a confrontation that led to an angry response, or was my dad killed in the process of performing other tasks (like mowing the lawn, pumping gas, etc)? Did my dad know the person or was he a random target? Is the guy even remotely remorseful or is he proud of his death tally? It isn't really "you killed, now you die". It's "you killed, now let's examine your history and the logical possibilities for your future".