Harsh and inhumane treatment is rarely the disincentive folks often think it is. It also provides an extreme incentive for folks to plead guilty to other offenses to avoid being charged for such a crime - which can be good if they are guilty of something and this allows for justice without further harming the victims, but also would lead to innocent people pleading guilty to avoid the possibility of being boiled alive. That kind of shit is used every day in the justice system (in America) to avoid people clogging up the courts by insisting on exercising their right to a fair trial.

This is one of those problems which has a solution that is clear, simple, and wrong. Criminals must be treated with basic human dignity, because unless you are the almighty, you can’t possibly know exactly what a person “deserves.”

I’m not trying to be harsh or anything. Feelings like this are absolutely understandable and natural. I have 5 kids and were someone to harm them I would demand to see every manner of cruelty inflicted upon that person. But our laws must strive to be better then that.