The Problem With the Death Penalty | Law & Order

The detectives all react differently after witnessing a killer's execution.

From "Aftershock" (Season 6, Episode 23): Briscoe, Curtis, McCoy and Kincaid (Jerry Orbach, Benjamin Bratt, Sam Waterston, Jill Hennessy) witness an execution and try to come to terms with their roles in the killing of another human being.

Show Synopsis: In the criminal justice system, the people are represented by two separate yet equally important groups: the police who investigate crime and the district attorneys who prosecute the offenders. These are their stories. From Emmy-winning creator Dick Wolf, with its groundbreaking "ripped-from-the-headlines" format, comes the highly-acclaimed, longest-running crime series in television history.

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Welcome to the official YouTube channel for Law & Order. Watch all of the official clips from the series, some of the best moments from within the criminal justice system, where the people are represented by two separate yet equally important groups: The police, who investigate crime, and the district attorneys, who prosecute the offenders.
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[kimanireid]

Does anybody remember an episode where an innocent man was executed after being framed for a crime he didn't commit, then later on the DA's office attempted to try the actual perpetrator for the framed man's death, *in other words the DA wanted to prosecute the actual person for the murder of the innocent man the state executed*

[virginiatrailcameravideos]

I was a witness to a state execution one time. My experience was not like this. The person being executed cussed everyone out for about 12 minutes and then the nightly news reported the execution and said the person declared his innocence. The family of the person being executed sat in the room with the rest of us witnesses.

[shadowrobot]

The whole thing about them losing control of their actions being cruel and we don't do that is inaccurate. We give them a paralytic so that they don't move while the real drug that kills them does its work. The paralytic makes it so they can't move or breathe or tell you if they are in pain or the execution is going wrong. Its no humane it's just done to make it look pretty or "peaceful" for the audience or the people performing the execution.

[generichuman]

My only issue with the death penalty is the fact that innocent people have been convicted. However, some people are guilty of crimes so heinous that they deserve to leave the world in a much more awful way than that

[jraoulmer]

Jill Hennessy's last episode as ADA Claire Kincaid, wished she didn't leave, but I understood Hennessy's contract was up for renewal & she decided to depart to pursue other projects

[Antraeon]

They may not agree on everything, but those two were always looking out for eachother. Admirable, to say the least.

[TommyRibs]

This was a great episode. The first episode that actually went outside of the established episode format.

[TheMilitantHorse]

This episode was harsh. Seeing all the characters not really solving a crime but just dealing with the emotional aftermath (or Aftershock, ba-dum-tis) really was something else.

[Milnoc]

The biggest problem with the death penalty is that you can't correct a mistake.

[dave]

Just saw this last night. Jack was the only one who wasn’t upset by what he saw. At least that’s how it was written. Wonder how many times this does take place in the real world - attorneys and such who prosecuted the case viewing it.

[charlesstephens]

I believe that there are human beings that perpetrate such heinous crimes that they deserve to be executed ( serial killers for instance). However, there is a long history of innocent people being executed, so for that reason I am against the death penalty.

[darthhauler]

Poor Lenny. That final scene with him in this episode was rough and not one I would want to experience.

[justinjohnson]

I forgot how cold Jack McCoy was back in the day. He just came from watching a man's life leave him, covered Claire, and gave every defendent the worst punishment for the crime they were accused like its just another day at the office. Jack McCoy is a legend.

[studlord]

They make it seem like the whole process from arrest to execution is just a few months, instead of the decades it usually takes. They said something about the convict not letting his lawyers get in the way, but I'm not sure it works like that. Most appeals in capital cases are automatic, mandatory, and non-waivable.

[theduke]

only thing really unrealistic is them actually seeing an execution in New York. last execution in New York State was 1963, and the abolished the death penalty all together in 1984, and this episode is a decade or more later

[YolandaAnneBrown]

What's even more devastating about this episode, other than the ending? THAT PEACOCK DOESN'T AIR IT!!!! What's up with that? I want it!! #BringInTheFirst12

[georgeharrisonlover]

Lennie didn't drop one of his funny lines during the execution? I'm not sure if I should be relieved or disappointed.🤣

[bernlin]

I do think a community can make these life-or-death situations in extreme circumstances (like serial killers), but I'm definitely uncomfortable with the state having the power to put people to death. In a corrupted political system, that can easily lead to political killings that are "laundered" through a crooked legal system. It's happened before, in other countries.

[carterclaire]

“I bet you get a real kick out of that” was added because they’re was a survey done on people who give the death penalty and 74% said they did get a kick out of it

[ItsGooseIsland]

No doubt the best episode of the series. Prove me wrong