Randy Halprin - Help me come to a decision!

[Wicket]

Hi Guys,
I've been reading Randy Halprins blog (at least what is left of it) and I understand that he has been convicted with the Law of Parties legislation, I know he was the youngest in the Texas 7 and I also understand his initial conviction was something to do with child abuse which of course I find most abhorrent. Now, as you know, I am very much pro-DP. I'm also not given to believing everything I read, especially if its from the horses (Shetlands) mouth, though I will say Halprins blog is less full of the 'poor me' and 'food sucks' then is Mark Stromans.

Though I am absolutely pro-DP I am on the fence regarding Randy Halprin - irrespective of what he has written (its not relevant to me at this point) it would appear he did not actually kill someone - so I'm on the fence regarding whether I think he should die or not. I loathe being on the fence, so maybe the more learned members here can give me further information or opinion on this particular situation so I can come to an educated decision...

I'm just not good at fence sitting! Thanks in advance for your comments all :-)

[Mirrrr]

I think i shouldn't log on to much on my phone cause i see i gave a plus karma by accident. If i log to much everyone is full of karna

[v1976ra]

Even as a pro, I don't necessarily agree with EVERY death sentence that's handed down, just as there are times when some POS escapes the needle when I think he/she should be put down. However, I do take some degree of comfort in knowing that juries don't arbitrarily hand down death sentences. One can make arguments all day about the pros/cons of  the Law of Parties. In the end, most of these guys knew the potential consequences, yet  chose to participate in the crimes that landed them where they are. In this light, the blame and responsibility still lies with the offender, as it always does. He knew, or should have known he was playing with fire. He got burnt... so tough cookies.

Just my two cents...

[Wicket]

Your 2 cents is exactly what I was after, thank you!

[AnneTheBelgian]

Offender Information : http://www.tdcj.state.tx.us/stat/halprinrandy.htm








Anne

[Wicket]

Thanks Anne :-) Whats your take on it? I'm mostly familiar with the facts, I'm just hazy on my moral standpoint...

[Wicket]

This isn't helping:

Randy Halprin, 33: The Collin County native was serving 30 years for beating a baby. He met the child's mother in an Arlington homeless shelter in 1996 and moved in with the family. A month later, Halprin repeatedly beat the infant because, he later said, the baby would not stop crying. The child suffered broken arms, legs and a fractured skull.

http://www.lawenforcementtoday.com/news/view/7265

But still, as much as DP for child abusers sounds just fine to me, its still not murder..... aaaaahhh I'm soooo confused about this and it bugs me!

[JonnyTwoToes]

This isn't helping:

Randy Halprin, 33: The Collin County native was serving 30 years for beating a baby. He met the child's mother in an Arlington homeless shelter in 1996 and moved in with the family. A month later, Halprin repeatedly beat the infant because, he later said, the baby would not stop crying. The child suffered broken arms, legs and a fractured skull.

http://www.lawenforcementtoday.com/news/view/7265

But still, as much as DP for child abusers sounds just fine to me, its still not murder..... aaaaahhh I'm soooo confused about this and it bugs me!

I think most of us agree that the law of parties is arcane.
There is no way this guy should be on death row for this 'crime'.  He should, however, be beaten on a daily basis by fellow lifers for hurting that baby the way he did.
Scum bag yes.  DP scum bag, no.

[Wicket]

Thanks Johnny  I'm not sure that the law of parties is arcane, after all, it must have been introduced for a purpose since most laws like this have some form of precipitate action which the legislators acknowledge and respond to. There are some convicted under this law that I truly believe are worthy of the DP, Im just not sure that Halprin is one of them...

[JonnyTwoToes]

Thanks Johnny  I'm not sure that the law of parties is arcane, after all, it must have been introduced for a purpose since most laws like this have some form of precipitate action which the legislators acknowledge and respond to. There are some convicted under this law that I truly believe are worthy of the DP, Im just not sure that Halprin is one of them...

I'm not sure that anyone should face the DP if they weren't the one who actually committed the act of murder though.

[ScoopD (aka: Pam)]

This is not a difficult one for me, Halprin escaped prison with 6 other violent offenders, the 7 of them robbed the Sporting Goods store, Halprin carried a weapon during this robbery, Halprin carried stolen merchandise out of the store.  Halprin played a key role in the robbery which resulted in the death of Officer Hawkins.   Halprin knew the consequences of his actions yet he still made the choice to participate in the crime. All 7 escaped convicts deserved to be punished equally and they were.  For me, there is nothing to ponder........

[JonnyTwoToes]

This is not a difficult one for me, Halprin escaped prison with 6 other violent offenders, the 7 of them robbed the Sporting Goods store, Halprin carried a weapon during this robbery, Halprin carried stolen merchandise out of the store.  Halprin played a key role in the robbery which resulted in the death of Officer Hawkins.   Halprin knew the consequences of his actions yet he still made the choice to participate in the crime. All 7 escaped convicts deserved to be punished equally and they were.  For me, there is nothing to ponder........

But when it becomes OK to sentence people to the DP just because they where with someone who decided to kill, things get a little scary for me.

Agreed, the guy's obviously a scum bag, but is he as bad a someone who has premeditated a murder and pulled the trigger?  I don't think so personally.

[ScoopD (aka: Pam)]

This is not a difficult one for me, Halprin escaped prison with 6 other violent offenders, the 7 of them robbed the Sporting Goods store, Halprin carried a weapon during this robbery, Halprin carried stolen merchandise out of the store.  Halprin played a key role in the robbery which resulted in the death of Officer Hawkins.   Halprin knew the consequences of his actions yet he still made the choice to participate in the crime. All 7 escaped convicts deserved to be punished equally and they were.  For me, there is nothing to ponder........

But when it becomes OK to sentence people to the DP just because they where with someone who decided to kill, things get a little scary for me.

Agreed, the guy's obviously a scum bag, but is he as bad a someone who has premeditated a murder and pulled the trigger?  I don't think so personally.

When you carry a weapon such as a gun to commit a crime you are making the conscious decision to use that weapon if the opportunity presents itself...    Halprin made that choice, he was a willing participant in the entire crime and Office Aubrey Hawkins sustained eleven gunshots and had been run over by the convicts.  They all deserved the punishment they received in my opinion which also happens to be the opinion of their juries. 

[JonnyTwoToes]

This is not a difficult one for me, Halprin escaped prison with 6 other violent offenders, the 7 of them robbed the Sporting Goods store, Halprin carried a weapon during this robbery, Halprin carried stolen merchandise out of the store.  Halprin played a key role in the robbery which resulted in the death of Officer Hawkins.   Halprin knew the consequences of his actions yet he still made the choice to participate in the crime. All 7 escaped convicts deserved to be punished equally and they were.  For me, there is nothing to ponder........

But when it becomes OK to sentence people to the DP just because they where with someone who decided to kill, things get a little scary for me.

Agreed, the guy's obviously a scum bag, but is he as bad a someone who has premeditated a murder and pulled the trigger?  I don't think so personally.

When you carry a weapon such as a gun to commit a crime you are making the conscious decision to use that weapon if the opportunity presents itself...    Halprin made that choice, he was a willing participant in the entire crime and Office Aubrey Hawkins sustained eleven gunshots and had been run over by the convicts.  They all deserved the punishment they received in my opinion which also happens to be the opinion of their juries.

I agree that carrying a weapon isn't the wisest thing to do and I agree that he made some really bad decisions, but the fact remains that he didn't kill officer Hawkins.

Reminds me, to a lesser degree, of the Kenneth Foster case.

[Elric of Melnibone]

He was with them during the escape.  He shared in the proceeds of the robberys.  He was with very violent people.  He was armed with a weapon. 

And he is as responsible as the shooter in the murder of officer Hawkins.  He was ON THE RUN.  They Killed a police officer and all of the remaining 5 need to die.