Life or Death? I'm confused

On most subjects I have a good idea where I stand. On moral issues... well that's even easier. So I was shocked Saturday when I was listening to a talk radio program and had absolutely no idea how I felt.

While coming home from work a weekend host that I don't usually listen to was on the radio. Mike Gallagher is a just another in a long line of conservative talk radio host. So it didn't surprise me when I heard him talking about the death penalty and a man who is scheduled to be executed in Texas very soon.

The victims brother came on the show and they were discussing how the usual anti-death penalty crowd was rallying around this man Kenneth Foster Jr. Mr. Foster was convicted in the death of Michael LaHood Jr who was twenty five at the time. I was thinking how typical, these same people can run to support these murders but never seem to care about the victim or their family. The death penalty doesn't bother me as long as justice has been served fair and complete. In this case Mr. Foster was found guilty by a jury and has not been over turned in the appeals process.

I was about to turn the channel when someone mentioned that the man who shot the victim to death has already been executed. What? Yep, it seems that Mr. Foster was the driver of the 'get away car'. He didn't actually shoot anybody. In Texas and other states the law states he is just as guilty as if he pulled the trigger.

At first I thought ok, fair enough. They were targeting women that night to rob and carjack. They had already perpetrated five crimes before the murder. They followed the victim's girlfriend to his house with the plan to rob her at gun point. Mr. Foster knew all about it. What they didn't know was the victim was in the car in front of her and went to her rescue when they all arrived at his house at the same time. Foster drove them there and he drove them away.

The problem is, the more I thought about it the more I wasn't sure he should be executed. I've always thought the death penalty was for those who directly commits murder. Did this guy know his partner in crime would shoot the victim? I doubt it. Would he have driven him had he known? More than likely, yes. They had been assaulting people all night.

So now I'm in an unfamiliar position of not knowing how I feel about an issue. So what is justice in this case? I wish I knew.