Pentobarbital, Euthanasia Drug, Used in Oklahoma Execution: Was It Inhumane? - Health Blog - CBS NewsNope...and they will never come back and kill another person.
...When the time came to execute John David Duty on Thursday, Oklahoma put the convicted killer down like a dog. That is, they gave him pentobarbital, a sedative used to euthanize pets.
Duty, who was 58, is thought to be the first person in the U.S. whose execution involved the drug. But he may not be the last: pentobarbital could become more popular because of a nationwide shortage of a key ingredient in several states' lethal injection formulas, death penalty experts say.
Traditionally, Oklahoma and several other states have used a barbiturate called sodium thiopental, followed by pancuronium bromide, a muscle relaxant, and potassium chloride, which stops the heart.
But Hospira Inc. - the only U.S. maker of sodium thiopental - said Thursday new batches of the drug could be available "in the first quarter" of next year. They blamed the shortage on problems with its raw material providers.
Oklahoma prisons spokesman Jerry Massie said after the execution that there did not appear to be any problems with the new drug. The lethal drugs began to flow at 6:12 p.m., and Duty's breathing became labored one minute later. At 6:15 p.m., he appeared to stop breathing and the color drained from his face.
...Duty and two other death-row inmates had challenged the state's decision to use pentobarbital, arguing it could be inhumane because a person could be paralyzed but still aware when a painful third drug is administered to stop the heart.
On Tuesday, a federal appeals court upheld a ruling against the other two inmates. Duty did not take part in the appeal.
...At a federal court hearing in November over the use of the new drug, an anesthesiologist testified on video that that the 5,000 mg of pentobarbital Oklahoma planned to use is enough to cause unconsciousness and death within minutes, and even a defense expert testified that amount of pentobarbital would be fatal.
But defense attorney Jim Rowan, a board member of the Oklahoma Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty, was concerned about the lack of evidence on the effects of the use of the drug on humans. He said, "No one who has been put to death has come back and testified about what it felt like."
Mr Rowan for some reason you don't mention what this waste of sperm did....let's go over it:
Duty pleaded guilty to first-degree murder in the 2001 slaying of 22-year-old Curtis Wise. At the time, Duty was serving three life sentences for rape, robbery and shooting with intent to kill.Good riddance to bad garbage.
According to court records, Duty convinced Wise he could get some cigarettes if Wise pretended to be his hostage so that Duty could be transferred into administrative segregation. Wise agreed to let Duty bind his hands behind his back. Duty then strangled him with a sheet, court records state.
Investigators said Duty penned a letter to Wise's mother immediately after the killing, saying, "Well by the time you get this letter you will already know that your son is dead. I know now because I just killed him an hour ago. Gee you'd think I'd be feeling some remorse but I'm not."
Next time they run out of the chemicals to do the job a tire iron would work just as well. Be a lot cheaper also. Get one at any auto supply store for a couple bucks.
ReplyDeleteTechnique...advantages and disadvantage. Also reusable...
ReplyDeleteI've often said I would like to see public hangings brought back...let people see justice done. But if we're short rope can anyone go to AutoZone..he’s a ten!