But is capital punishment the right solution? President Trump scheduled a total of five executions right up until the end of his presidency, starting with Brandon Bernard, who was pronounced dead on December 10th as punishment for a crime he committed as a teenager. Currently, there are 52 inmates awaiting a death date.
Higgs’ story is becoming more and more divisive, and it is not the only one of its kind. “I’d expect the person who actually killed… to get a death sentence, and the person who didn’t participate to get the life sentence ,” agreed Jordan Im ’23. According to many more students, execution is too extreme of a punishment in this case. “…is still an accomplice to this murder, so this holds him to a point of culpability and should maybe serve the same sentence as the person who pulled the trigger…it was first-degree murder, so that means… probably spend the rest of their life in prison, but I don’t think that… should be given the death penalty,” stated Sebastian Verrelli ’23. Several SHS students have begun to form their own opinions about the situation as well. On the other hand, supporters of Higgs’ execution, including the relatives of the deceased, believe that Higgs was the source of the issue since he supplied the gun and may have ordered Haynes to commit the crime. Their reasoning is that it is unfair that Haynes was the actual murderer, but will suffer from a less severe consequence from something that has not completely been proven. This discrepancy, according to his lawyers, is not something that should warrant the death penalty. Allegedly, he also told Haynes to kill the women though this has not been confirmed, Higgs was still charged on three counts of premeditated murder. Although the fact that Higgs did not actively participate in the murder of these three women has been accepted by the state, he still aided in the kidnapping and ultimately provided the weapon that was used. The main dispute over Higgs’ sentence is the question of the extent of his involvement in the incident. The controversy over the use of state-authorized executions, in general, is a topic that has come to light in recent years, and with a new president to enter the Oval Office this year, these policies are bound to change. In the months leading up to this fateful date, however, Higgs’ situation has amassed national attention, as he has been given a worse punishment than that of the man who pulled the trigger. Higgs’ execution date, roughly 21 years after his conviction, was today, January 16th, 2021, only four days before President-Elect Joe Biden will formally be sworn into office. Haynes was later sentenced to life in prison, yet Higgs received a sentence for capital punishment, otherwise known as the death penalty. On the morning of January 27, 1996, Willis Haynes shot and killed three women in Laurel, Maryland with the help of Dustin Higgs.