Facing a nationwide shortage of a lethal injection drug, Arizona has taken an unusual step that other death penalty states may soon follow: get their supplies from another country.
Such a move, experts say, raises questions about the effectiveness of the drug. But it also may further complicate executions in the 35 states that allow them, as inmates challenge the use of drugs not approved by federal inspectors for use in the U.S.
Arizona said Tuesday that it got its sodium thiopental from Britain, the first time a state has acknowledged obtaining the drug from outside the United States since the shortage began slowing executions in the spring.
“This drug came from a reputable place,” Arizona’s Chief Deputy Attorney General Tim Nelson said. “There’s all sorts of wild speculation that it came from a third-world country, and that’s not accurate.”
Cripes! A shortage of a lethal injection drug? This is nuts. And heaven forbid it come from China. It probably should come from China. They are the experts.
Switch to bleach. That stuff is cheap.
or air.
Last I checked bullets still work. Or maybe we should just get Ole Sparky out of storage.
So… the lethal injection drug is coming from the UK where we don’t kill people with this / have the death sentence anymore and probably use it for our cats and dogs.
Probably should have got it from China; or you could use all those guns you have lying around. (Which is probably cheaper for the tax-payer anywhere and not as horrible to watch/administer.)
Why not use an overdose of heroin instead? It is cheap AND plentiful. Thanks GI JOE!
If we start obtaining the lethal drug from China it will probably be contaminated with lead or some such nonsense.
Hell, knock ’em out with a cheap sedative and inject lye or bleach, or antifreeze, or just keep pushing the sedative in massive amounts directly and just get ‘er done!
All the ObamaCare Death panels have bought up all the supplies in preparation for the hordes of elderly that will be lined up for their stimulus package.
That’s some good investigative reporting. The drug in question (sodium thiopental) is most often used in the induction of general anesthesia, and the world supply is not greatly altered by the capital punishment uses. It is used either with other drugs or in some cases by itself to administer death sentences, but it’s primary use for general anesthesia.
“A shortage of a lethal injection drug?….It probably should come from China. They are the experts.”
Naw, they use cheap 9mm bullets to back of the head.
The Republicans have it all stashed away, so that they can kill the middle class more effectively.
Why don’t we just stone them to death like they do in Iran. I’ll volunteer for the first one.
“Justice Elena Kagan’s first vote is against an execution
The newest member of the Supreme Court is in the minority in backing a stay of execution over questions about the safety of a drug to be used in a lethal injection. Shortly after the stay was overturned Tuesday, Arizona executed Jeffrey Landrigan. Four others said they disagreed and said would have preserved the stay. They were Justices Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Stephen G. Breyer, Sonia Sotomayor and Kagan.
Landrigan was convicted of murder in 1989. He was put to death by lethal injection Tuesday evening shortly after the court’s order was handed down. ”
http://latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/sc-dc-1028-court-execution-20101027,0,6859358.story
The Chinese like to use bullets in the back of the head, as that approach doesn’t cause any complications with organ harvesting.
#9, yes they do. Its quick, efficient, foolproof and not very messy (except in front.)
I think it might also be hard on the soldiers who have to hold the arms of the executionee.
#10, keeping the Bush tax cuts is doing that real good. (Like they asked Willie Sutton why he robbed banks, “That’s where the money is.” Who else has any friggin’ money? Of course you tax the rich. They’re the only ones with money.)
Well known issue since the beginning of the year.
All you need is a tank of nitrogen or helium. It’s the preferred method in the suicide guide. Your out within a minute and dead in five. The CO2 is still being vented out, so there’s no drowning reflex. Why have these complex procedures?
Sad. I believe that state has the right to use capital punishment when warranted. But the way capital punishment is implemented in this country is the worst. I think the idea of using drugs to “put them to sleep” like putting down a pet is terrible.
Capital punishment is an ugly and powerful weapon, reserved for the worst of the worst. I hate that we try to sugar coat it like this in order to make it acceptable to the public. It should be, like abortion, a rare, but legal option.
I’d like to see firing squads. I want the other inmates on death row, and the press, to hear the shots at dawn on the rare occasions when it is carried out. They all need to know that the state means business.
There will never be a shortage of volunteer officers or qualified citizens who can serve on a firing squad. And the prisoner will be dead within minutes.
#17. “There will never be a shortage of volunteer officers or qualified citizens who can serve on a firing squad.”
Jobs, Jobs, Jobs…..let’s vote for Jobs!!!!!
It’s surprising the whole process hasn’t been outsourced.
huh..
hey i know.. why dont we just o.d.’em on vaccines? *rimshot*
-s
I’m against the death penalty, not on basic principle, (eye for an eye) but because our system of justice is so horribly inaccurate that I’m sure we have killed a number of innocent people. And the sentencing laws are completely bogus to boot.
On the other, hypothetical hand, if we are indeed going to have the state commit homicide, it should be public and brutal. The guillotine or the chair seem to fit the bill.
Since we aren’t going to have any of those,
I’d vote for morphine, since in theory, heroin is illegal :).
Call the CIA, they should let them have a few eight balls of smack, and just OD the poor soul, just keep giving him herion until he is dead, simple fix and painless. Then there is just a 22 to the head for backup.
I’m an anesthetist and can confirm that there has been a shortage of pentothal for several years. We haven’t had it in the OR for at least to years.
Why use such complex methods. Wood chippers are readily available. Justice would be served, it would serve as an excellent deterrent and as a bonus, the prisoner’s body can be used as fertilizer. A win-win-win situation.
Any doctor who participates in a lethal injection absolutely should have their license revoked, since this is a clear violation of the Hippocratic oath.
# 9 Frank said, …China…they use cheap 9mm bullets to back of the head.”
Actually, China switched over to lethal injection ten or twelve years ago.
# 18 McCullough: Thanks for that. My morning chuckle.
# 21 spsffan said, “…it should be public and brutal. The guillotine or the chair seem to fit the bill.”
Public executions have never been shown to be a deterrent. Brutal executions are forbidden by the Constitution.
Personally, I think the whole way we do executions is probably cruel (if not unusual). After being isolated from most human contact for some months prior, the chosen one is forced to walk to the death chamber where he is strapped to a cross. err. table where a catheter is inserted into his penis and a plug inserted into the anus (so that no soilage is noted to shame the prisoner at the time of death), then large bore needles are inserted, usually in both arms, that are difficult to place and may require multiple attempts (if enough attempts fail, there is supposed to be a physician standing by to do a surgical insertion). Finally, the curtains are opened and the audience can see the medical procedure in progress. I have no trouble with the actual drug OD. In fact, the three drug regimen seems like a bit of “overkill” to me. We use the thiopental to put them into a coma so they won’t feel the pain of the other two two drugs.
A surprise bullet to the back of the head doesn’t sound so inhumane!
# 25 – the AMA doesn’t allow doctors to perform executions, regarding it as against the hippocratic oath.
Army doctors do assist during ‘questioning’ in Guantanamo to ensure the patient stays alive.
There are thousands of highly toxic compounds and thousands of others that will kill if you get to much of them by knocking you out and causing you to stop breathing. Buying something special seems redundant.
# 27 Nobodyspecial said, “the AMA doesn’t allow doctors to perform executions”
The AMA is an association of physicians. They may make statements of ethical stance but they do not regulate the practice of medicine.
A doctor who is a member of the AMA is in no danger of losing a license if they choose to assist in providing executions. They might lose their membership in the AMA but that’s more akin to losing your membership in the YMCA than a serious assault on their license to practice medicine.
P.S. I am NOT a member of the AMA. My license is in no jeopardy.