President Approves US Soldier's Execution

President Bush has approved the first execution of an American soldier in almost half a century. Private Ronald Gray was convicted of a series of rapes and murders 20 years ago, before being sentenced to death.

As commanders in chief, presidents have the final authority to approve capital punishment under the Uniform Code of Military Justice, occasionally choosing instead to reject or commute the sentences to life in prison, as President Kennedy once did in 1962.

The last time a solider was executed was in 1961, following a 1957 order from President Dwight Eisenhower.

Jul 29, 2008 · posted by Cord Jefferson · Link · 9 Responses

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Tagged: Crime & Punishment, Dwight D. Eisenhower, Executions, George W. Bush, Government, John F. Kennedy, Military, Ronald Gray

Comments (9)

No. 1 · TiP

Everyone knows Bush doesn't mind putting folks to death. I thinks it helps that devil sleep at night.

Posted: Jul 29, 2008 at 3:33 pm

No. 2 · *M*

ok? He is a rapist and a murder; he deserves to die.

Posted: Jul 29, 2008 at 3:41 pm

No. 3 · um

I should care about his murdering raping ass because??????????

Posted: Jul 29, 2008 at 4:09 pm

No. 4 · Daria at Gorgeous Black Women

I hope he feels the same way about the murderers and rapists whose victims were non-Americans. I recall a certain soldier killing an Iraqi girl's family, raping and killing her, then getting a bunch of other soldiers to cover his a–.

Posted: Jul 29, 2008 at 4:59 pm

No. 5 · J

Allllll these white soldiers on my television day after day for killing their pregnant wives and 14 girlfriends who– we learn after they're captured boogie boarding in the South of France– must be excused because have PTSD and ADD and ADHD and LMNOP… I'm sure they're numbers two, three, four and five, right?

Posted: Jul 29, 2008 at 5:08 pm

No. 6 · Daria at Gorgeous Black Women

Speaking of which, WTF is with all these soldiers knocking up their sideline women (generally fellow soldiers) and then killing them? Never heard of condoms? Stepping up and dealing with your problems like a big boy? It's not all PTSD definitely because some of them haven't ever set foot outside this country.

I know the leading cause of death for pregnant women is homicide, generally by the baby daddy, but geesh.

Posted: Jul 29, 2008 at 5:47 pm

No. 7 · Daria at Gorgeous Black Women

…and for goodness sake, you've seen how great it worked out for your peers.

Posted: Jul 29, 2008 at 5:48 pm

No. 8 · solitaire

I don't really believe in the death penalty, but I also don't care about what happens to this guy either.

Posted: Jul 30, 2008 at 12:37 am

No. 9 · shakti

@ solitaire - i couldn't agree more!

Posted: Jul 30, 2008 at 11:04 am

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