Christian loons who support the death penalty.

[LadyForCamus]

I would say perhaps that's an oversimplification of the scenario.  Many people who are mentally ill can still discern right from wrong.  That's why the accused are afforded fair trial, along with psych evals from a qualified professional if they pursue that line of defense.  If a defendant was deemed mentally impaired to the degree of not understanding their actions then I would agree that the death penalty is not an appropriate punishment in that circumstance.

One can demonstrate through neurological MRIs, CT scans, etc., brain structure deformities in adults who were abused as children; to say that they are responsible for their actions to point of being executed for those actions is substance dualism, something that I would expect to hear from the lips of people like WLC.

I didn't say that at all. What I'm saying is, making a sweeping generalization that all people who commit violent, horrible crimes are mentally incapacitated to the point of not understanding right from wrong is an oversimplification of criminal psychopathies. I have no idea if the man in my scenario was abused as a child. I was just using his crime as an example. Just because someone can't control themselves doesn't mean they don't possess the wherewithal to seek help before they ACT on their sick fantasies. Have you ever watched To Catch a Predator? Those guys know exactly what they're doing, and they all have the same cookie-cutter, pre-planned responses on tap the SECOND they realize it's a set up.