Theodore Roosevelt
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Theodore Roosevelt
It certainly ought to be possible by the proper administration of the laws to secure swift vengeance upon the criminal; and the best and immediate efforts of all legislators, judges, and citizens should be addressed to securing such reforms in our legal procedure as to leave no vestige of excuse for those misguided men who undertake to reap vengeance through violent methods. Men who have been guilty of a crime like rape or murder should be visited with swift and certain punishment, and the just effort made by the courts to protect them in their rights should under no circumstances be perverted into permitting any mere technicality to avert or delay their punishment. (From a 1903 letter commending the governor of Indiana for taking a stand against lynch mobs. Presidential Addresses and State Papers, v. 2, pp. 523-528)
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