Death Row inmate inflicts self-injury (WARNING! DISTURBING CONTENT!)

[Plot Device]

Okay, I kept the thread title as tame as could be. So, for you brave souls who actually clicked, here goes ....

Back in early December, as he sat in his Death Row prison cell in Texas, Andre Thomas, age 25, plucked out his own eyeball and ate it.

It gets more gruesome.

It was evidently his only good eye. His other eyeball was already missing ... because it was LIKEWISE plucked out --by his own hand-- back in 2004 as he awaited trial for a triple-murder. He had killed his wife and their two sons: a newborn infant and a 4-year old. The eyeball incident back in 2004 caused a judge to deem him incompetant to stand trial. So he's been on Death Row ever since.

(And in addition to murdering the wife and the kids, he also pulled out their hearts and stuffed them raw and dripping and totally uncovered into his pockets, went home, and then trash canned them.)

Here's a quote from the story that (I think) justifies this entire thread as being MORE than just a freak show shock-thread, and makes it a topic worthy of discussion.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090109/ap_on_re_us/death_row_eye



Texas death row inmate pulls out eye, eats it

By MICHAEL GRACZYK, Associated Press Writer -- January 9, 2009

HOUSTON--

[...]

A death-row officer at the Polunsky Unit of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice found Thomas in his cell with blood on his face and took him to the infirmary.

""Thomas said he pulled out his eye and subsequently ingested it," agency spokesman Jason Clark said Friday.

Thomas was treated at East Texas Medical Center in Tyler after the Dec. 9 incident. Then he was transferred and remains at the Jester Unit, a prison psychiatric facility near Richmond southwest of Houston.

"He will finally be able to receive the mental health care that we had wanted and begged for from day 1," Bobbie Peterson-Cate, Thomas' trial attorney, told the Sherman Herald Democrat. "He is insane and mentally ill. It is exactly the same reason he pulled out the last one."




So this guy is a CERTIFIABLE NUT-CASE, and yet the system hasn't truly attended to his mental health issues for the past 5 years.



.

[KTC]

Or did he do it so he can prove that he is insane even though he isn't?

[Plot Device]

Or did he do it so he can prove that he is insane even though he isn't?


Um .... at what net benefit? (He's now permanently BLIND fer krysaik!)

And the ripping-out-the-hearts thing??

Eww!

[William Haskins]

Okay, I kept the thread title as tame as could be. So, for you brave souls who actually clicked, here goes ....
The eyeball incident back in 2004 caused a judge to deem him incompetant to stand trial. So he's been on Death Row ever since.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090109/ap_on_re_us/death_row_eye

.

please edit your post. i'm not sure how a news story that clearly says "competent" got changed to "incompetant" (and spelled wrong) in your version, but it does alter the thrust of the story.

[Rolling Thunder]

An eye for an eye?

[Zoombie]

Ugh.

I'm anti-death penalty cause it just causes shit like this. Either he's insane or he's determined enough to pluck out an eyeball for freedom. I say, sure, don't kill him...just keep his blind ass in JAIL.

FOREVER!

[Ol' Fashioned Girl]

Okay... I typed my opinion and deleted it because of the 'incompetent'. Now I'm gonna say it:

Yeah, I'm hard-hearted. It's a shame he couldn't cut out his own heart and stuff it in his pocket.

[KTC]

Um .... at what net benefit? (He's now permanently BLIND fer krysaik!)

And the ripping-out-the-hearts thing??

Eww!


There is a difference, in my mind, from insanity and someone viciously murdering his family and removing their hearts. And if you are so afraid of being put to death because of the crimes you committed, I think blindness to save your life would be a reasonable trade-off.

Pulling your eyes out and eating them does not a crazy person make. It would make someone who is manipulative enough to disfigure himself to get what he wants...in this case his own life.

He would need psychiatric assessment to determine insanity...not eyeballs in his stomach.

[KTC]

please edit your post. i'm not sure how a news story that clearly says "competent" got changed to "incompetant" (and spelled wrong) in your version, but it does alter the thrust of the story.


Clearly they declared him competent because they saw the first eyeball incident as an attempted manipulation of the judicial system...but that is just my speculation. He clearly thought, "Maybe if I pluck out the other one, they'll take me off death row and allow me to live...surely they will then see me as insane." Desperation makes people do some pretty bizarre things...but again, this is just my speculation.

Insane? I doubt it. Hoping to be declared insane? Probably.

[William Haskins]

yes, my comment was strictly related to the logical cohesion of this thread.

as for everything else, fuck him. he's blind, and might be crazy, but his wife and kids are deader than fried chicken.

send him to hell.

[Plot Device]

Clearly they declared him competent because they saw the first eyeball incident as an attempted manipulation of the judicial system...but that is just my speculation. He clearly thought, "Maybe if I pluck out the other one, they'll take me off death row and allow me to live...surely they will then see me as insane." Desperation makes people do some pretty bizarre things...but again, this is just my speculation.

Insane? I doubt it. Hoping to be declared insane? Probably.

KTC, thank you for the quote.

*goes to re-edit the OP*

[Plot Device]

There is a difference, in my mind, from insanity and someone viciously murdering his family and removing their hearts. And if you are so afraid of being put to death because of the crimes you committed, I think blindness to save your life would be a reasonable trade-off.

Pulling your eyes out and eating them does not a crazy person make. It would make someone who is manipulative enough to disfigure himself to get what he wants...in this case his own life.

He would need psychiatric assessment to determine insanity...not eyeballs in his stomach.


I look at it this way: when you try to pull a fast one on a judge and/or a court-appointed shrink, you're taking a gamble that your bluff won't pay off. So in the event that you not only lose a piece of your body, but you ALSO lose your wager, you have to accept the booby prize of doing hard time in the Big House. And having zero vision in the Big House is a sure way to achieve a quick death.

Of all the disadvantages you can theroretically inflict upon a human opponent, the permanent and 100% loss of their vision is perhaps the easiest way to render them utterly helpless.

So if this is a con game, he bet the farm on this one, and then some. (So either way he's STILL crazy.)

[blacbird]

(So either way he's STILL crazy.)

CRAZY is not equivalent to "innocent by reason of insanity". The legal definition of the latter is very specific, and not simply a reflection of some form of mental illness.

caw

[William Haskins]

And having zero vision in the Big House is a sure way to achieve a quick death.

bullshit. he'd be in protective custody the rest of his life and actually be safer than any sighted prisoner.

[Plot Device]

CRAZY is not equivalent to "innocent by reason of insanity". The legal definition of the latter is very specific, and not simply a reflection of some form of mental illness.

caw


Okay. I will give you that. So he's guilty but still crazy.

So did he get ANY mental health care in that prison before the second eyeball got eaten? If he did, then his lawyers have nothng to complain about. But if he's gotten ZERO mental care, then I see that as a problem.

[Cyia]

Exactly how did he do this with no one noticing?

[blacbird]

Exactly how did he do this with no one noticing?

People get stabbed, beaten, murdered, gang-raped in prison, all the time. It's not like they're all under visual surveillance 24/7.

caw

[KTC]

People get stabbed, beaten, murdered, gang-raped in prison, all the time. It's not like they're all under visual surveillance 24/7.

caw


Plus, plucking out your eye and swallowing it would take approximately 5 seconds.

[Plot Device]

Exactly how did he do this with no one noticing?


He was all alone in his cell, and I guess there was no one watching him (or they felt no need to watch him). And I hear crazy people can inflict self-mutilation and not feel pain, or somehow they can ignore the pain.

And I don't think it takes more than a few seconds to gouge out an eyeball (okay, maybe a whole fifteen seconds).

[Plot Device]

Plus, plucking out your eye and swallowing it would take approximately 5 seconds.

I hear they go down better with a little gingerale.



(Or possibly some fava beans and a nice chianti.)

[KTC]

I hear they go down better with a little gingerale.



(Or possibly some fava beans and a nice chianti.)

word

[Cyia]

Ah -- I read the article wrong. I thought the first eyeball plucking was more recent. I couldn't figure out why they weren't watching him.

[KTC]

Ah -- I read the article wrong. I thought the first eyeball plucking was more recent. I couldn't figure out why they weren't watching him.

As long as you can figure out why he isn't watching them. (-;

[Plot Device]

As long as you can figure out why he isn't watching them. (-;


Well, with a history of self-mutilation, SOMEBODY should have been keeping an eye on him!





























:D






.

[blacbird]

Well, with a history of self-mutilation, SOMEBODY should have been keeping an eye on him!

Funny, in a nasty mordant sort of way, just the kind of thing I like. But it needs to be remembered that the people who take guard positions in these kinds of institutions tend to be the same people who flunked metal shop in high school. And the enthusiasm for having to deal with these kinds of subhumans has to drain the energy of anybody.

caw

[Project nachonaco]

I just can't see how something like that could happen. :)

[Beach Bunny]

First of all, the majority of the people in prison have some form of psychological problem. Whether they need treatment or not and whether treatment will do them any good or not is not something that can be determined by reading the facts of a case in a news article. Every person who enters the prison system should be evaluated by a competent psychiatrist. But, it's hard enough finding a competent psychiatrist in private practice much less employing one for peanuts to work in the prison system.

Second of all, is the guy a sociopath, a psychopath, or have some mental illness which affects his judgement. Was he aware of what he was doing and that it was wrong? Or was he delusional? A sociopath knows what they are doing, they know it is wrong, and they do it anyway. They are mentally ill and beyond treatment. Mental illness (crazy) does not immediately mean incompetent.

Third of all, anyone who thinks that being in prison for the rest of your life is a whole lot better than being dead needs to go spend a week behind bars. When you get out let me know if you changed your opinion to "only marginally better than being dead, but not by much" OR "no, I would rather be dead than go back there."

And no, I have never been personally locked up for anything. I've never been inside a police station. But, I have been inside a prison visiting someone and let me tell you it SUCKS *** ***** ****** *****! ... People who are of the opinion that we coddle prisoners can just go to hell.

[SHBueche]

I'm not sure what to add in the way of this thread, except that this guy is in a Texas prison. Clearly, he is mentally ill, but as to whether or not he should face death row OR life in prison? I'd want to read the court documents.

[dolores haze]

If I was this level of nuts I'd be begging to be put out of my misery. Yeah, bring on the DP - not as a punishment, but as a mercy.

[DwayneA]

he ate his own eye? You've got to be kidding me!

Pardon me while I go throw up!

[rhymegirl]

as for everything else, fuck him. he's blind, and might be crazy, but his wife and kids are deader than fried chicken.

send him to hell.

I think I have to agree with you. He deserves no mercy.

[cethklein]

The guy is on death row, who gives a damn about his mental health issues? We're spending enough of my tax dollars as it is to house this animal. Lock him in his cell and let him do whatever his little heard desires. If he wants to blind himself, fine. If he wants to cut his nuts off and play ping-pong with them, more power to him. He's on death row, there's no hope for him. Who cares?

[Joe270]

Quote:
Originally Posted by Plot Device
Well, with a history of self-mutilation, SOMEBODY should have been keeping an eye on him!

Funny, in a nasty mordant sort of way, just the kind of thing I like. But it needs to be remembered that the people who take guard positions in these kinds of institutions tend to be the same people who flunked metal shop in high school. And the enthusiasm for having to deal with these kinds of subhumans has to drain the energy of anybody.



Agreed, and I add that the guards are there to keep the rest of us safe from the criminals, not keep the criminals safe from themselves, for the most part.

[cethklein]

Agreed, and I add that the guards are there to keep the rest of us safe from the criminals, not keep the criminals safe from themselves, for the most part.

This too. Again, let this guy and others like him do what they want. Sure, give them medical treatment if they hurt themselves, but I don't think it's anyone's responsibility to keep them FROM hurting themselves in the first place. This guy made a conscious decision to pull out his eye. I respect that decision.

[Monkey]

If someone is so crazy that they think it's OK to rip the heart out of their own infant son, their own small child, their own wife, then I don't see why we ought to keep them around.

So long as he's not out on the street, I can't really give a damn what happens to him--especially what he does to himself. I'll save my sympathies for those more worthy of them.


ETA: To me, saying this guy needs proper care and psychiatric counseling is like saying, "Sure, this rabid dog attacked my child, but it still deserves its flea meds and a soft bed at night...it's sick, you know."

[cethklein]

If someone is so crazy that they think it's OK to rip the heart out of their own infant son, their own small child, their own wife, then I don't see why we ought to keep them around.

So long as he's not out on the street, I can't really give a damn what happens to him--especially what he does to himself. I'll save my sympathies for those more worthy of them.


ETA: To me, saying this guy needs proper care and psychiatric counseling is like saying, "Sure, this rabid dog attacked my child, but it still deserves its flea meds and a soft bed at night...it's sick, you know."

Agreed. I never understood the whole idea that a criminal being insane somehow warrants sympathy. So now instead of being a murderer, he's an INSANE murderer. How is that somehow "less bad"?

[Plot Device]

Can anyone tell me WHY it takes so many years to actually get around to executing these guys on Death Row?

Why was this guy sentenced in (I think) 2006, and yet he's still alive today, 2 years and some change later?

[William Haskins]

because they are entitled to due process and the wheels of justice grind slowly.

[Cranky]

Can anyone tell me WHY it takes so many years to actually get around to executing these guys on Death Row?

Why was this guy sentenced in (I think) 2006, and yet he's still alive today, 2 years and some change later?

Appeals process.

Crossed with Haskins again: we simply must stop meeting like this.

[William Haskins]

the average is a bit more than 10 years between conviction and lights out.

[William Haskins]

Appeals process.

Crossed with Haskins again: we simply stop must meeting like this.

it's okay. she wouldn't see it otherwise. she's got me on ignore. i could post the mega millions numbers, the meaning of life and a photo of god buying a snowcone and she'd never see it.

[Cranky]

it's okay. she wouldn't see it otherwise. she's got me on ignore. i could post the mega millions numbers, the meaning of life and a photo of god buying a snowcone and she'd never see it.

Well, that's too bad. Good lotto numbers are a bitch to come by...I'd hate to see anyone miss out on that.

Sorry about the weird phrasing, btw. I have no idea what's wrong with my brain tonight. I fixed it in the post, though.

[benbradley]

For what it's worth, I'm against the death penalty for many reasons, one being that the cost (when you add in all the automatic/required appeals, everything from sentencing to execution) is substantially greater than life in prison.
I think I have to agree with you. He deserves no mercy.
If I was this level of nuts I'd be begging to be put out of my misery. Yeah, bring on the DP - not as a punishment, but as a mercy.
That's two interesting quotes - rhymegirl is implying that letting him live would be mercy that he doesn't deserve, and dolores is saying executing him would be mercy...
The guy is on death row, who gives a damn about his mental health issues? We're spending enough of my tax dollars as it is to house this animal. Lock him in his cell and let him do whatever his little heard desires. If he wants to blind himself, fine. If he wants to cut his nuts off and play ping-pong with them, more power to him. He's on death row, there's no hope for him. Who cares?
In a legal sense this is true. He was declared legally competent to stand trial and presumably was declared sane (by the legal definition, I won't argue his actions weren't plainly insane) both when he committed the crimes and when he was convicted and sentenced. What his mental state/legal status as far as being sane or insane NOW doesn't matter.
Agreed, and I add that the guards are there to keep the rest of us safe from the criminals, not keep the criminals safe from themselves, for the most part.
I suppose that's the way a lot of people feel about prisoners, even though 1 out of 100 US citizens is now in prison, many or even most for things like getting caught smoking a joint. For that they not only get prison time, they may well get to experience getting raped by another inmate.
If someone is so crazy that they think it's OK to rip the heart out of their own infant son, their own small child, their own wife, then I don't see why we ought to keep them around.

So long as he's not out on the street, I can't really give a damn what happens to him--especially what he does to himself. I'll save my sympathies for those more worthy of them.


ETA: To me, saying this guy needs proper care and psychiatric counseling is like saying, "Sure, this rabid dog attacked my child, but it still deserves its flea meds and a soft bed at night...it's sick, you know."
This shows we DO have different standards for dogs than we do humans - when a dog shows itself to be a danger to people, we "put it to sleep" with little or no fanfare. It takes millions of dollars of legal processes and one or two decades before we "put a person to sleep."

[blacbird]

This shows we DO have different standards for dogs than we do humans - when a dog shows itself to be a danger to people, we "put it to sleep" with little or no fanfare. It takes millions of dollars of legal processes and one or two decades before we "put a person to sleep."

Except that, oddly, we don't "put a person to sleep" in the same way we do animals. The instant injection death of animals (I've had several geriatric pets put down in this fashion in my life) is far more humane than the cocktail of poisons approved for human execution. I've never understood that. It's also been the subject of court appeals, etc.

caw

[Monkey]

Rip the heart out of an infant, and you're worth far less to me than a half-decent dog.

Even one that craps the floor.