A prominent tech investor sparked outrage and debate after calling for executions by hanging for repeat violent offenders. In a post shared on X, venture capitalist Joe Lonsdale wrote that if he were in charge, he would move quickly to hang men after three violent crimes. The comment, made online this week, drew swift reactions from legal scholars, criminal justice advocates, and public safety groups who said the idea clashes with U.S. constitutional protections and modern sentencing standards.
“If I’m in charge later, we won’t just have a three strikes law. We will quickly try and hang men after three violent crimes,” Lonsdale wrote on X.
The statement comes as crime policy again becomes a flashpoint in state and national politics. It revives hardline “three strikes” rhetoric from the 1990s while testing the limits of punishment under U.S. law. It also arrives amid new data showing a nationwide decline in violent crime in 2023, after a pandemic-era spike.
Three-Strikes Laws and Their History
Three-strikes laws grew in the 1990s after high-profile crimes. California’s 1994 statute became the model, imposing long sentences on people with multiple serious felonies. Voters later scaled it back in 2012 to reduce life terms for nonviolent offenses. Many states adopted similar laws, and the federal government passed a version as well.
Supporters say these laws protect communities by keeping repeat violent offenders off the streets. Critics argue they can sweep in lower-level cases, drive prison populations up, and fail to curb crime in a lasting way. Research on deterrence is mixed, and reform efforts over the past decade have narrowed some state statutes.
Constitutional and Legal Hurdles
Legal experts said Lonsdale’s call for hanging would face immediate constitutional barriers. The Eighth Amendment bans cruel and unusual punishment. While the U.S. Supreme Court has allowed the death penalty in limited cases, it requires strict due process, and methods must meet evolving standards of decency.
No state currently authorizes hanging as an execution method. Most states that retain capital punishment use lethal injection. A few allow alternatives such as the firing squad or electrocution under rare conditions. Any move to adopt hanging would trigger intense court challenges and likely fail, scholars said.
Capital punishment is also limited by case law to the “most serious crimes,” generally aggravated murder. Applying it to a category based on a criminal record, rather than the nature of a single offense, would run into proportionality concerns under Supreme Court precedents.
Public Safety Claims and Crime Trends
Lonsdale’s post framed extreme punishment as a tool for safety and order. But national data offers a more complex picture. FBI figures show violent crime fell in 2023, including a sharp drop in murder compared with 2022. Early reports from major cities in 2024 point to further declines in killings and robberies in many areas.
Experts caution that crime can vary widely by city and by type. They also note that long sentences have diminishing returns on deterrence once a threshold of certainty and swiftness of punishment is met. Community-based strategies, focused policing, and economic supports are often cited as drivers of recent declines.
Reactions Across the Spectrum
Criminal justice reform groups condemned the post as dangerous rhetoric. They said it risks inflaming fear and could distract from policies with proven impact, such as focused deterrence, gun violence prevention, and treatment programs.
Some tough-on-crime advocates welcomed the focus on repeat violent offenders but distanced themselves from the method. They pressed for measures like truth-in-sentencing, stricter bail for high-risk defendants, and more victim services.
Legal commentators framed the statement as political messaging rather than a practical plan. “This proposal collides with established constitutional law at every turn,” one constitutional lawyer said, pointing to Eighth Amendment limits and due process requirements in capital cases.
What the Data Suggests
- FBI data show violent crime decreased in 2023, and murders declined by double digits from 2022 levels.
- States continue to reassess mandatory minimums and three-strikes statutes, with some narrowing eligibility for life sentences.
- No U.S. jurisdiction uses hanging today; any attempt to reinstate it would face immediate court review.
Some studies find that the certainty of being caught deters crime more than the severity of punishment. Others stress that rehabilitation and reentry support can reduce repeat offenses. States are testing approaches like targeted probation, investments in mental health, and rapid interventions for the small number of people linked to a large share of shootings.
Lonsdale’s post adds heat to the conversation but does not reflect current legal practice. The coming months will show whether candidates and lawmakers pick up the call for harsher repeat-offender laws or focus on strategies backed by recent results. For now, the data signal falling violence, while courts and constitutions set firm limits on how far punishment can go.
