Innocence In Death By Fire And Deadline

“The most persuasive argument offered by abolitionists is the dark shadow that looms largest in the minds of people who have conflicting thoughts about the existence of capital punishment: the execution of an innocent person” (Marquis, 2004, p. 127). The argument of innocence has long plagued capital punishment. To reject the idea that innocent people are sentenced for crimes they did not commit would be ignorant. In fact, history has shown that innocent people have been sentenced for crimes they did not commit and later freed due to evidence proving their innocence. In the films Death by Fire and Deadline, innocence fuels the question should America have capital punishment today? In the film Death by Fire, Todd Willingham was convicted and sentenced to
On December 23, 1991, Todd’s family home in Corsicana, Texas was badly burned by what investigators called arson. During the fire, Todd was able to escape but without his three children who later would be pronounced dead. After investigators claimed the house was burned due to arson, Todd was questioned. During his interview it was said that Todd showed no remorse until he saw pictures of his children's dead bodies. He was encouraged to plea guilty to avoid the death penalty but Todd refused. His wife Stacey stood by Todd’s side until he was sentenced to prison. She made a statement that Todd loved his kids and wasn’t capable of killing them. Although his wife stood by his side for some time, most if not all of Corsicana believed he was guilty and there was no amount of evidence that would change their mind. Todd Willingham’s case was surrounded by political agendas and poor counsel. In fact, Willingham’s own defense attorney later made the statement that he was certain Todd was guilty. As the date for Willingham’s execution came closer, an arson expert went back to the house and determined that the fire pattern was due to ventilation not accelerant. In the end, this