GUEST, from NW, said, in part:

the state should not be allowed to commit murder. that's what the death penalty is, murder premeditated.

Not so. Murder is a creature of statute, defined by the State, at least in the US. There is no common-law crime.

Now, whether the death penalty is justified, ever, is a question which is legitimately arguable, but don't overstate your case by fuzzing up concepts to lend emotional appeal to your position.

Dave Oesterreich