New York State Police have charged five people with murder in the killing of a missing man who authorities said died following repeated acts of violence and torture for more than a month by multiple individuals who later discarded his body in a field.

The victim, Sam Nordquist, a 24-year-old transgender man originally from Minnesota, was reported missing on Feb. 9. Police said he arrived in New York in September and had lost contact with loved ones.

Major Kevin Sucher, commander of the state police troop that includes the Finger Lakes region, said the facts and circumstances of the case were “beyond depraved” and “by far the worst” homicide investigation the office has ever been part of.

“No human being should have to endure what Sam endured,” he said, during televised news conference. Police did not share many details of the case, noting it remained under active investigation.

  • itslilith
    1·
    4 days ago

    If they get life without parole they can’t, either. But if in ten years you figure out they were actually innocent, you can release an inmate. You can’t unkill an executee

    The deterrent argument usually goes “people are more afraid of dying than of getting imprisoned, so they’ll not commit that crime”. This probably doesn’t work. Because even if the basic premise was true (it likely isn’t), the consequences are bad anyways. You need to draw the line somewhere. Let’s say murder gets you the death penalty, and so does rape. Now a rapist has nothing to lose, might as well kill the victim to hide the evidence.