flawed execution.
By impactEDnurse • Apr 24th, 2007 • Category: ectopics::Rumi::
A new study published by the Public Library of Science has found that execution via death by lethal injection may in fact in some instances lead to death by asphyxiation.
Two of the three drugs administered during this form of execution are identical to drugs we administer for a rapid sequence intubation (although at larger dosages). A short-acting barbiturate: thiopental used to induce anaesthesia, followed by a neuromuscular blocking agent: pancuronium bromide, which leads to muscle paralysis.
Studies of 44 executions found that the protocols for the administration of drug doses may have been insufficient to produce anaesthesia before the persons breathing was stopped via neuromuscular blockade. They also found the doses of potassium chloride used did not reliably induce cardiac arrest. Hence, potentially aware, but *locked in* inmates might die through asphyxiation induced by the muscle paralysis caused by pancuronium.
The authors conclude that:
…even if lethal injection is administered without technical error, those executed may experience suffocation, and therefore that “the conventional view of lethal injection as an invariably peaceful and painless death is questionable.” The Eighth Amendment of the US Constitution prohibits cruel and unusual punishment. The results of this paper suggest that current protocols used for lethal injection in the US probably violate this amendment.
[Read more:
Lethal Injection for Execution: Chemical Asphyxiation? - T. Zimmers.
The death penalty. - Amnesty international.
Lethal injection is not humane.- editors PSoS medicine.]
impactEDnurse is also known as Ian Miller, a nurse with over 26 years experience working in a busy emergency department in, Australia. This site in no way reflects the opinions of that hospital.
All stories (although based on actual experiences) have been changed to protect patient confidentiality.
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There’s a quick answer to this: using heroin confiscated by the police (which is currently incinerated), make up a weak solution of heroin in saline, and infuse that into the prisoner. Heroin produces an initial high, followed by unconsciousness, followed by respiratory arrest, in that order.
Into the bargain, you’re disposing of a police waste product too.
Well OK, this isn’t going to be politically correct but here goes….their victims suffered terribly before they died. Their friends and families continue to suffer. Who the hell cares if the inmate suffered before they died, they should suffer. In fact they should suffer in exactly the same way their victims did or the family should be allowed to choose the method of execution. Please. These namby pamby idiots worried about prisoners rights need to be a victim once and they would change their tune.
If they are dead when the process is over I am for it. I don’t care how much they suffer.
Coming from a veterinary perspective, this does not make sense to me. Killing something/someone quickly and humanely is not brain surgery (well, I suppose that would work, too), and cost can not possibly be a factor in a case that has already cost hundreds of thousands to millions of dollars. Veterinarians do it to much bigger animals with drug costs of less than $100 every day.
For euthanizing animals, we use large quantities of barbiturates with nothing else. Deep anesthesia occurs almost instantaneously (sometimes the vet barely has time to get the needle out and get out of the way before the horse drops) and death follows within minutes. Occasionally, you come across a horse that needs a second dose, but anything resembling consciousness is long gone.
The main drawback is that, at least in horses, there are sometimes involuntary “reactions” where the horse rears up or shakes before falling down, but these can be minimized by pre-sedating with something like xylazine. Oops, I guess that’s not used in people, but probably something like Valium would work in people, whereas Valium is not given by itself to horses very often. I have been assured that the horse is already unconscious and that this is an involuntary reaction, not a panic response.
It just doesn’t seem that hard to me to at least give them enough barbiturate that you can be *sure* that a person is unconscious before you do anything else.
P.S. It just occurred to me that the injection site might be important in comparing horses and humans, as the vets I know use a 14 gauge needle in the jugular, the neck being the standard, most accessible place of the horse. However, cats and dogs are euthanized using peripheral injection sites.
Bullets are still cheap. Someone with the ability to hit what they are aiming at (a real gun control enthusiast!) can take care of this quite simply. Like other posters…I don’t care if they suffer or not as long as the end result is they are done. For-Evv-Er.
It’s a lethal dose of barbiturate that goes in first. As long as the IV is functional, there is no significant likelihood of consciousness.
But I’m with ER nursey. They still got treated better than their victims, so I don’t really care that much.