Retiring police head moots death penalty

Press, 5 January 1987, Page 1

Retiring police head moots death penalty

PA Wellington The retiring Commissioner of Police, Mr Ken Thompson, has suggested that the death penalty should be considered in some murder cases, the "Sunday Times” has reported. This follows a record number of murders in New Zealand in 1986. Provisional police figures show that 65 people were killed, four more than in 1985 which was also a record; the previous high was 49 in 1981. Mr Thompson said talk of the death penalty was very emotive but he gave qualified support for consideration of its use in some cases.

"There has been talk over the years of us looking at degrees of homicide, different penalties for premeditated first-de-gree murder as opposed to domestic type crimes of passion, a heat-of-the-moment thing where death is inflicted.

“I am just wondering if it is not appropriate that we look at it again. “I am just wondering if the deterrent is not there. We have to look at some way to indicate to people if they take the life of another, their prospects of returning to society are pretty bleak.

“The death sentence is pretty emotive but it would not be inappropriate to look at what we need and I certainly

would not exclude that sort .of thing from my consideration.”..... '

Mr Thompson did not think more police would help stop the growing murder rate as many murders were committed in places where police did not have access. Rather it was people’s attitudes to others that had to change.

“I think it has to start right from the cradle. The sanctity of human life is not there for some people in our society.” The Police Association, which has campaigned for greatly increased police numbers, concedes that more policemen on the beat would not stop the growing murder rate. The association’s president, Mr Keith Morrow, agreed that the problem lies in society and that people’s attitudes must change. He is also concerned about evidence which shows an increasing number of murder victims have no previous relationship with their assailants. In the past, murders tended to stem from domestic or neighbour disputes but “now in all kinds ’ of incidents the solution is to resort to violence,” Mr Morrow said.

Though Mr Morrow does not think more police will stop increasing murders he says all violent crime is on the rise, and in areas such as robberies, more police would definitely be a deterrent.