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I am not opposed to the death penalty. The cases it is reserved for are horrific acts of crime where true malice and intent of the heart are proven.

On the other hand, I hate the death penalty because of the appeals process and how victim's families are dragged through the system for years. However, in the case of the Boston bombing, I believe it is worth it. I was so angry reading just the victim's statements that I cannot imagine hearing it in person and seeing the videos and images too.

I also don't support capital punishment in any circumstance.

@Mrs. Jacks: agreed.

@travellingbee: I agree with this. Giving him the death penalty makes him a martyr, which may be what he wanted in the first place. I think killing him is really bad PR, and maybe bad national security wise, too.

@Lilbear: have to agree, my only disappointment is that he'll die without great physical suffering.

I'm not opposed to the death penalty but prefer it be reserved for the most heinous crimes. This is one.

I like to think that it will send a message to terrorists. This guy is a scum bag.

I don't think anyone should have the authority to take a human life. An eye for an eye and the whole world goes blind.

That being said, I'm not crying about him getting the death penalty either. The world is better off without him.

@anonysquire: As @Mrs. Jacks said it just makes him a martyr. Terrorists are not afraid to die for the cause.

I am against capital punishment. I also feel that life in prison with no chance for appeal would have been more closure for the families - and a worse punishment for him.

i struggle with it mainly because of my faith.

I believe all life is sacred and strongly oppose the death penalty.

I'm fine with it, some people on this earth that commit horrific and brutal crimes just don't deserve to live. Life in prison is no fun at all, but I think it's worse sitting on death row knowing someday in the near-ish future you are going to die.

@jedeve: all life is sacred, really?? Someone who kills children and innocent lives? Their life is sacred? Sorry...just no. I highly doubt you would be singing that tune if someone killed your child.

@looch: Death penalty, in many cases, has been found to be more expensive due to the costs associated with the appeals process.

@looch: the death penalty is more expensive. Also many victim's families oppose the death penalty because they don't want to be dragged through appeal after appeal.

@NovBaby1112: yes, it's one of the central tenets of my religion. It's not always an easy belief, because of situations like this. Yes, I believe some people are scum, but I don't believe it's for me to decide who lives and who dies.

@NovBaby1112: I don't see anything wrong with @jedeve: 's belief that life is sacred. Not my kid, but my brother was running, he was stopped just before crossing the finish line where his wife was waiting for him. They're both okay, but easily could have met a different outcome. This hits close to home for me, and I don't have religious doctrine that tells me I need to forgive him, but I, too, believe that human life is sacred, even when it's commited acts of evil. Shut him up, keep him from spreading his evil, protect humanity from his evil acts, but don't let him become the martyr he seeks to be, show him compassion he doesn't deserve, show him we are not the evil he thinks we are, let him be wrong, let us be better than that.

I was beyond shocked that here in MA they found a group that would go for the death penalty.

@mrs. bird: call me naive, but I thought with a life sentence for such a young person, he would have years and years to speak about the questions surrounding it - who pulled the trigger on Sean Collier, what did his brother do/see while in Russia in 2011, details on the Waltham murders and Todashev - when you have all those years to yourself.
now I'm afraid with a death sentence he'll spend whatever years he has fighting his appeal, ugh.

@mrs. bird: this is said to such perfection. Let us be better than that.

I wish I could find the story, but there was a story floating around while waiting for the jury's decision from a guy who worked in the supermax prison where Tsarnaev would have been sentenced to life. Prisoners spend 23 hours in solitary. A single 4x4-foot skylight is their only light. They get 1 hour of time in the yard, which is walled in, so they still only ever see the sky. The guard said it's a harrowing, miserable life, and most of the prisoners end up going insane - banging their heads against the walls, scraping their fingers raw. If they're educated, they can lose themselves in books, but most of them aren't educated enough to do that, so they just...rot. That seems a fitting end to Tsarnaev to me.

Death row is long, expensive, and filled with appeals...it takes decades to finally put someone to death. It is cost-prohibitive. And each time he is up for an appeal, the families of the victims will have to relive it. We hear about Charles Manson every time he is up for appeal/parole, so I have no reason to believe we won't hear about Tsarnaev.

Like some others (@rachiecakes @psw27), this is very personal for me, so it was interesting to see how I reacted to the news of his sentence. I was also at the finish line when it happened, and while I healed pretty quickly physically (very lucky to just suffer some hearing loss), the memory of that day is still very raw and real and frightening. I have been torn about the death penalty and honestly don't know if I could have made the decision. All I know is that when I heard the news, I was at peace.

@PSW27: I'm with you on never getting answers, and the hope that his face and the headlines just fade away. I'm sorry you suffered because of him... sending you healing thoughts.

@rachiecakes: @yogirunner I have heard of the resiliency center, they are doing great things. Luckily my issues are emotional not physical but it's still hard as I'm sure you both know. I'm sure the trial has been draining for you both as well. Xoxo.