@fellow reg readers
"There was a BBC documentary on recently with that idiot politician (cant remember his name) as he went across the US learning about capital punishment over there, and whilst those yankees sounded really callous in their justification of it all, they really did have a good point - why should hardened violent types get off with living in a prison as a burden to the state, or being put to death in a peaceful way?"
While that sounds fantastically logical on the face of it, in reality the death penalty costs a great deal more than a life sentence in the United States. Between the money poured into law enforcement and prosecutorial investigations, the decade or so spent in prison exhausting the numerous appeals required by law, the related costs of the appeals themselves, and finally the cost of the execution and related paraphenalia, it costs a right shitload of money to have the state kill a man. In the state of Nebraska, more convicted murderers have died in prison awaiting execution than have actually been executed. That being said, the state's sole mode of execution (the electric chair) has been declared unconstitutional on grounds of cruelty; state senators have stonewalled the introduction of a new means of execution, meaning that a death sentence in this state is simply a much more expensive life sentence.
"Just like in Omaha NE, USA, where the shooter had some $250,000 spent on his mental care, and he still took an ak-47 and blew away a bunch of people. (Yes, I, too wonder WTF he was doing with a weapon like that in the house and available to an 18 yo kid -- I believe his daddy ought to be doing some hard time for that.)"
I certainly wouldn't blame the father. In the U.S., anyone 18 years of age or older can purchase a rifle or shotgun, and ammunition for it. This includes any kind of military-style semi-automatic weapon. The weapon in question was a Romanian-made AK-47 style weapon, probably a WASR-10. Such can be had at a pawn shop or sporting goods store for between $350 and $600. To effect such a purchase, one must fill out a single piece of paperwork provided by the BATF which asks one's name and a few personal detail, and ascertains that you are legally allowed to purchase the weapon in question (are you buying it for yourself or for another? Are you a user of or addicted to any illegal drugs? Are you an illegal immigrant?). The dealer must then perform a quick background check, which entails calling an FBI-run information center and providing your personal details. This typically takes about five minutes.
The purchase of a "long gun" firearm may be effected in most states with no waiting period and little hassle.
The point of all that is, had the little bastard not stolen his father's gun, he might readily have obtained one by himself. Even though it is illegal to purchase a gun if you've been committed to a mental institution in the past (which he had), information-sharing is shitty enough in the US that by simply lying on the paperwork, he likely could have purchased a weapon.
Sending his father to prison would do nobody any good whatsoever. It is notable that he selected a mall. In Nebraska, one can obtain a permit to carry a concealed weapon in order to defend oneself. Yet there are certain places one cannot carry, even with the permit. This includes malls. It would seem to me that the city bears some portion of the responsibility; it seems logical that if a state does not allow you to defend yourself, it should be liable if you are killed violently.
Back on the topic of the article itself, it takes more than a single moment of irrational anger to invade a man's home and stab him eighty-some-odd times. Capital punishment is expensive and irreversible, but modern technology has certainly provided us with some interesting new torture devices. He would seem to be a good candidate to help the state discover the long-term neurological effects of repeated high-voltage shocks. Perhaps a new twist on the old idea of the stocks could be fun. The shock-stocks, maybe; allow the passing public to press the button atop the stocks, resulting in a paroxysm of agony for the imprisoned murderer. It would certainly provide a powerful deterrent...
The skull and crossbones, because it's a grim subject.