Craig Garber pleaded guilty to a triple murder in Nashville,Tn. yesterday. Mr.Garber was facing the death penalty. Nashville’s District Attorney’s Office made the decision to offer a plea bargain agreement where Mr.Garber must  serve three consecutive life sentences.Mr.Garber will be eligible to get out in 153 years. There were several reasons why the District Attorney’s Office made the plea bargain offer.Swift punishment gives the family closure and avoids years of appeals.

Contrast the handling of this case compared to the Aurora ,Co shooting case. James Holmes offered to plead guilty to all these murders and accept a sentence of life without parole. The prosecutors in Aurora would not accept his plea offer. Now , the case is going to trial where the prosecutors will be seeking the death penalty. The case will drag on for years. Each court appearance will  remind all those of the tragedy. Houston lawyer Paul Kennedy posted on whether this decision is really serving justice. Is revenge the reason for going to trial on a death penalty ? Is the death penalty the right solution ? Mr.Holmes was ready to accept death in prison but the prosecutor did not to accept.

I would like to commend the Nashville District Attorney’s decision in this murder case. The prosecutors sought justice. Mr.Garber is going to die in prison. They sought relief for the family. The family agreed to the sentence.A death penalty case takes a life of its own with years of appeals which was avoided. I don’t always agree with the District Attorney’s Office on cases, but I do agree with how they handle death penalty cases. Death in prison is almost the same as the death penalty. The use of the death penalty should be substituted for life without parole.