Post by Anja Nieser on Sept 26, 2006 15:30:26 GMT -5
Swift and painless or cruel and unusual?
Minutes into the May execution of Joseph Lewis Clark in Ohio, in which a
potent drug was supposed to knock him out before a lethal chemical could
kill him, the condemned man raised his head and said, "It's not working."
Nearly 90 minutes later, after executioners struggled to insert a needle
into Clark's vein, he was finally pronounced dead.
In Virginia 2 years ago, the executioners of James Edward Reid spent 12
minutes trying to insert a needle into his groin after determining that
the veins in his arms were shot from years of alcohol abuse.
Lethal injection, once thought to be an alternative to the gruesome
methods of execution such as hanging and electrocution, is now
increasingly under attack in court cases in Virginia and across the
country.
At least 7 states, including the federal government, have halted
executions for 12 prisoners who have had their cases delayed because of
challenges to the lethal injection process.
North Carolina, California and Florida have proceeded with executions this
year after judges upheld the use of lethal injection.
Virginia is scheduled to execute John Yancey Schmitt on Nov. 9, but his
attorneys are challenging the lethal injection process and hope to
postpone the date as they argue the case in federal court. On Friday,
Schmitts attorneys lost a round in Richmonds U.S. District Court but more
appeals are planned.
Several other Virginia death penalty cases are working their way through
the court system as well.
"They're essentially raising the same issue, that the lethal injection
process is unnecessarily painful and risky and that's an Eighth Amendment
violation against cruel and unusual punishment," said Richard Dieter,
executive director of the Death Penalty Information Center in Washington,
a nonprofit research group opposed to capital punishment.
The center cites 25 cases since lethal injection was first used in the
mid-1980s in which there were problems, including prisoners showing signs
of pain.
The center cites one Virginia case the 1996 execution of Richard Townes
Jr. Technicians took 22 minutes to find a vein and finally inserted the
needle into Townes' right foot.
Virginia and 36 other states use lethal injection. Those that have faced
challenges to its use have vigorously defended it.
"Lethal injection in Virginia has never been found to be
unconstitutional," said J. Tucker Martin, a spokesman for Attorney General
Bob McDonnell. "This office will continue to adamantly defend Virginias
lethal injection statute."
The lethal injection process involves the use of 3 different drugs. The
1st drug, an anesthetic, is designed to cause unconsciousness. The 2nd
drug causes complete paralysis, and the third kills by stopping the heart.
Medical evidence shows that the inmate actually may feel more pain than is
recognized because the paralysis masks any outward signs of discomfort,
according to testimony in a number of capital cases.
David Bruck, law professor at Washington and Lee University School of Law,
said the lethal injection process faced little scrutiny in the courts
until the past few years.
"There was this whole panel of horrendous effects hacking at peoples
bodies, needles jumping out, squirting chemicals. There were people
turning blue," said Bruck, director of the Virginia Capital Case
Clearinghouse, which helps defend death penalty cases.
He is among the legal and medical experts who say that inmates can feel
suffocation and an intense burning.
"The most chilling thing about this three-drug combination is that you
wouldn't know," Bruck said. "The person is immobilized. He can't even
blink. He suffocates while he feels like he's burning alive at the same
time. Meanwhile, people are looking at him like he's peaceful."
Medical experts have testified that in 43 of 49 executed inmates, blood
concentrations of the anesthetic were lower than what's required for
surgery. Of those, 43 % had concentrations consistent with awareness.
Judges in Virginia so far have rejected arguments that the process is
cruel and unusual. 7 death row inmates in the past 2 years have raised the
issue, according to the Attorney General's Office. Four of those seven
lost those arguments and were executed.
Last week, a federal judge in Alexandria dismissed an appeal filed by
Norfolk native Darick Walker, condemned to death for slayings in Henrico
County.
Judges in other states have ruled in favor of those arguments, and some
legal experts see the issue headed to the U.S. Supreme Court.
"Courts have repeatedly found that this method of capital punishment is
constitutional and rejected all claims to the contrary," said Martin, the
spokesman for Virginias attorney general.
"What should not be lost in this conversation is the fact that we are
discussing the punishment of convicted murderers," he said. "These are
individuals who have taken innocent lives and shattered families forever.
Victims must not be forgotten as we discuss this issue.
[NOTE: Included as an addendum to the piece written by reporter Tim
McGlone an online poll has been posted on the question: Is the lethal
injection process cruel and unusual? to vote, go to:
home.hamptonroads.com/stories/story.cfm?story=111579&ran=102435&tref=de]
(source: The Virginian-Pilot)
Minutes into the May execution of Joseph Lewis Clark in Ohio, in which a
potent drug was supposed to knock him out before a lethal chemical could
kill him, the condemned man raised his head and said, "It's not working."
Nearly 90 minutes later, after executioners struggled to insert a needle
into Clark's vein, he was finally pronounced dead.
In Virginia 2 years ago, the executioners of James Edward Reid spent 12
minutes trying to insert a needle into his groin after determining that
the veins in his arms were shot from years of alcohol abuse.
Lethal injection, once thought to be an alternative to the gruesome
methods of execution such as hanging and electrocution, is now
increasingly under attack in court cases in Virginia and across the
country.
At least 7 states, including the federal government, have halted
executions for 12 prisoners who have had their cases delayed because of
challenges to the lethal injection process.
North Carolina, California and Florida have proceeded with executions this
year after judges upheld the use of lethal injection.
Virginia is scheduled to execute John Yancey Schmitt on Nov. 9, but his
attorneys are challenging the lethal injection process and hope to
postpone the date as they argue the case in federal court. On Friday,
Schmitts attorneys lost a round in Richmonds U.S. District Court but more
appeals are planned.
Several other Virginia death penalty cases are working their way through
the court system as well.
"They're essentially raising the same issue, that the lethal injection
process is unnecessarily painful and risky and that's an Eighth Amendment
violation against cruel and unusual punishment," said Richard Dieter,
executive director of the Death Penalty Information Center in Washington,
a nonprofit research group opposed to capital punishment.
The center cites 25 cases since lethal injection was first used in the
mid-1980s in which there were problems, including prisoners showing signs
of pain.
The center cites one Virginia case the 1996 execution of Richard Townes
Jr. Technicians took 22 minutes to find a vein and finally inserted the
needle into Townes' right foot.
Virginia and 36 other states use lethal injection. Those that have faced
challenges to its use have vigorously defended it.
"Lethal injection in Virginia has never been found to be
unconstitutional," said J. Tucker Martin, a spokesman for Attorney General
Bob McDonnell. "This office will continue to adamantly defend Virginias
lethal injection statute."
The lethal injection process involves the use of 3 different drugs. The
1st drug, an anesthetic, is designed to cause unconsciousness. The 2nd
drug causes complete paralysis, and the third kills by stopping the heart.
Medical evidence shows that the inmate actually may feel more pain than is
recognized because the paralysis masks any outward signs of discomfort,
according to testimony in a number of capital cases.
David Bruck, law professor at Washington and Lee University School of Law,
said the lethal injection process faced little scrutiny in the courts
until the past few years.
"There was this whole panel of horrendous effects hacking at peoples
bodies, needles jumping out, squirting chemicals. There were people
turning blue," said Bruck, director of the Virginia Capital Case
Clearinghouse, which helps defend death penalty cases.
He is among the legal and medical experts who say that inmates can feel
suffocation and an intense burning.
"The most chilling thing about this three-drug combination is that you
wouldn't know," Bruck said. "The person is immobilized. He can't even
blink. He suffocates while he feels like he's burning alive at the same
time. Meanwhile, people are looking at him like he's peaceful."
Medical experts have testified that in 43 of 49 executed inmates, blood
concentrations of the anesthetic were lower than what's required for
surgery. Of those, 43 % had concentrations consistent with awareness.
Judges in Virginia so far have rejected arguments that the process is
cruel and unusual. 7 death row inmates in the past 2 years have raised the
issue, according to the Attorney General's Office. Four of those seven
lost those arguments and were executed.
Last week, a federal judge in Alexandria dismissed an appeal filed by
Norfolk native Darick Walker, condemned to death for slayings in Henrico
County.
Judges in other states have ruled in favor of those arguments, and some
legal experts see the issue headed to the U.S. Supreme Court.
"Courts have repeatedly found that this method of capital punishment is
constitutional and rejected all claims to the contrary," said Martin, the
spokesman for Virginias attorney general.
"What should not be lost in this conversation is the fact that we are
discussing the punishment of convicted murderers," he said. "These are
individuals who have taken innocent lives and shattered families forever.
Victims must not be forgotten as we discuss this issue.
[NOTE: Included as an addendum to the piece written by reporter Tim
McGlone an online poll has been posted on the question: Is the lethal
injection process cruel and unusual? to vote, go to:
home.hamptonroads.com/stories/story.cfm?story=111579&ran=102435&tref=de]
(source: The Virginian-Pilot)