In many ways, "Death Note" is a dramatization of the highly contentious
issue of the death penalty. Light Yagami's belief than a better world by
executing the worst criminals is a central tenant among death penalty
advocates. Some death penalty opponents argue that the death penalty
would give the state excessive power, and that this power would
inevitably leads to abuse and corruption. Light's rapid descent into
psychotic narcissism is the personification of this point of view.
Part of the "Death Note" narrative reminded me of a particularly
controversial U.S. death penalty case: the 1992 execution of Ricky Ray
Rector. Rector was undoubtedly guilty of some truly heinous crimes. On
March 21 1981, Rector got into an argument over a $3 cover charge,
pulled out a gun and fired several shots. One man was killed and two
others were seriously wounded. He turned himself in, but ended up
shooting the arresting officer twice in the back, killing the officer.
Rector then pointed his gun at his temple and shot himself. This
apparent failed suicide attempt left Ricky severely mentally impaired.
That shot to the temple also performed an ersatz lobotomy that
profoundly affected his personality. He was no longer the angry
sociopath who would resort to extreme violence in order to get way.
Prison guards described the demeanor of Rector after the suicide attempt
as innocent and childlike. But it was the innocent and childlike Rector
that was given a lethal injection in 1992 for murdering a police officer
on duty.
The execution of Ricky Ray Rector was controversial for a number of
reasons. There were charges that the sentence was racially motivated
(Ricky was African American). The ethics of executing a mentally
disabled defendant was also an issue. There was also evidence that the
lethal injection given to Rector was botched. But mostly, there is a
feeling that execution was wrong because of the change in Rector as a
result of the suicide attempt. One cannot escape the feeling that the
Rector that should have been punished died in the suicide attempt, and
the man-child that occupied Rector's body after the attempt was
sacrificed to atone for crimes he most likely could neither recall nor
even comprehend.
Rector's story show why even a Death Penalty proponent would have
problems with Light's approach to executions. It seems that the only
justification Light needs to make a death note entry is a television
report of a serious crime: no additional details about the case are
examined, much less taken into consideration. Is there any doubt that if
Light lived in Arkansas in the early nineties, he would have entered the
name of the childlike Rector into his book?
Oddly enough, Light and Misa came very close to meeting Ricky's fate.
Consider the time period where neither of them had memories of their
death notes. During this time, Light was fully supportive of his fellow
investigators, and truly believed in bringing Kira to justice. Would it
have been right to execute Light during this time period, when he did
not know of his life as Kira and actively opposed Kira's killings?
Definitely not, but that would have been the likely outcome if L had
cracked the case at that time.
So Light can be seen twice in the Rector execution. Light definitely
embodies the spirit of Rector's executioners. But he came very close to
meeting the fate of Rector himself. Thus, we see what the Shinigami have
known all along: that executioners risk sharing the fate of their victims.
--
"All things extant in this world,
Gods of Heaven, gods of Earth,
Let everything be as it should be;
Thus shall it be!"
- Magical chant from "Magical Shopping Arcade Abenobashi"
"Drizzle, Drazzle, Drozzle, Drome,
Time for this one to come home!"
- Mr. Wizard from "Tooter Turtle"
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