Lethal Injection: Cruel and Unusual?

Neb. lawmakers advance lethal-injection bill - Ap-state-ne - The Fremont Tribune - Fremont, Nebraska's Community Newspaper

LINCOLN, Neb. - A bill that would make lethal injection Nebraska's sole means of executing prisoners is headed to the final round of debate.

Lawmakers gave second-round approval to the bill (LB36) Tuesday, despite protests from some senators that the measure is deeply flawed.

The vote came after lawmakers rejected an attempt to postpone consideration of the bill.

If the measure is approved on the third round, it would go to Gov. Dave Heineman for his consideration. He has said he supports changing the state's method of execution.

Nebraska has been without a means of execution since February 2008, when the state Supreme Court ruled that the electric chair was unconstitutional because it amounted to cruel and unusual punishment.

I see. And lethal injection is not?

In most states three chemicals are used for lethal injection: Sodium thiopental, pancuronium bromide, and potassium chloride. The first of these is considered an ultra-short-acting bromide which is effective as an anesthesia for just a few minutes. The second, pancuronium bromide, marketed as Pavulon, paralyzes the skeletal muscles without affecting the nerves or brain. The individual injected with Pavulon is conscious without being able to move or speak, thus giving the impression of serenity or tranquility. In the state of Tennessee, it is a crime for veterinarians to use this drug in euthanizing pets. The final injection, potassium chloride, stops the heart while causing excruciating pain. The effect of this “cocktail,” according to testimony by Dr. Mark J.S. Heath who teaches anesthesiology at Columbia, is “that the sodium thiopental can be inadequate or wear off”…leaving “the prisoner conscious, paralyzed, suffocating and subject to extreme pain from the potassium chloride”

According to Judge Ellen Hobbs Lyle, “The subject gives all the appearances of a serene expiration when actually the subject is feeling and perceiving the excruciatingly painful ordeal of death by lethal injection…the Pavulon gives a false impression of serenity to viewers, making punishment by death more palatable and acceptable to society”

Problems with Lethal Injection

Once again, trusted lawmakers prove themselves utter fools.

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