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Pros And Cons Of Lethal Injection

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Imagine being in a cement room with nothing but a metal bed and a hole to defecate in for years on end. Imagine one day a person comes to get you and brings you to a room. In this room there is a chair with leather straps that you will eventually be forced into. There is a tube that leads into another room but you cannot see past the wall separating you. When you sit in the chair you are constrained like an animal and you must mentally prepare for what is about to happen. The intravenous therapy (IV) is incorrectly planted into your wrist and you are poked and prodded multiple times before the person standing before you decides it is correct. You suddenly feel drowsy and you slowly slip into a tired state. Being asleep for not too long …show more content…

This method includes a cocktail of three drugs. These three drugs enter an inmate's body and work separately to “painlessly” kill the convict. The first drug administered to the patient is sodium thiopental. Thiopental is a barbiturate which slows down the activity and functions of your brain activity. An overdose of this drug causes the blood pressure to drop drastically causing the body to potentially go into shock. This injection will act as an anesthetic to the person that will make them fall asleep. The second substance injected through the tube is pancuronium bromide which is a neuroblocking chemical that acts as a paralytic. This chemical has a high potential to cause anaphylaxis shock which is a state of shock for the body. This is used to make sure the patient cannot move around unnecessarily. The last medication is potassium chloride, a chemical that regulates the transmission of nerve pulses, which is the lethal injection that stops the patient's heart. In the case of an overdose on this substance hyperkalemia is caused. Hyperkalemia is the result of higher potassium levels than normal. This causes heart arrhythmias (rapid heart beats) and eventually a heart attack resulting in death. These three medications combined carry out the capital punishment. Because lethal injection is so common and “painless” it is used in prisons around America. The method is easy to teach and easy to learn. Lethal injection, because of its popularity, violates many parts of the constitution in particular the eighth

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The most painless and quicker capital punishment is the lethal injection. Maples explains, ”This cocktail paralyzes the respiratory functions, stops the heart by the action of potassium chloride and closes down the brain quietly and painlessly by means of barbiturates.” Many people die when the needle is still injecting in

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These methods were grisly and inhumane. Prisoners sometimes took up to twenty minutes to die. Some had to be electrocuted several times while screaming in agony. In 1977 Dr. Deutsch created a method of execution involving several different kinds of drugs to humanely induce death. Officials liked this method of execution as it medicalized the process and was easier to witness.

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Harold Shipman’s murder weapon of choice was diamorphine ("Serial Killer, Dr. Harold Shipman, A.K.A. Dr. Death"). This is a medication used to treat pain in patients with severe pain, as well as, terminally ill cancer patients, However, it is lethal when given in an excessive amount ("Morphine Facts | Resources | Best Drug Rehabilitation"). Morphine was an excellent choice of a murder weapon for Shipman for multiple reasons. First, death from morphine toxicity would be difficult to determine without performing an autopsy on the body. The deceased patients would appear to the physical eye that they died of natural causes.

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The justices ruled on this case the same way as they did with the Baze v Rees case, there is no definite proof that the drug will cause a painful and torturous death, which means the drug cannot be

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There are three different types of chemicals that come with these three injections. First, there is sodium thiopental. Sodium thiopental is a barbiturate that renders the prisoner unconscious which would cause the inmate to pass out . The second injection is pancuronium bromide which is a relaxant that paralyzes the diaphragm and lungs which prevent them from breathing,also it paralyzes the entire muscle system. The third injection is potassium chloride which causes the victim to have a cardiac arrest.

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Clayton Lockett an inmate from Oklahoma also died in similar cruel circumstances. After numerous failed attempts to start an IV, medical professionals ultimately decided to run an IV line through the femoral vein in Clayton Lockett's groin. This is in spite of the fact that the medical team overseeing the execution didn't have a needle of the right size (“New Docs Detail Chaos” 2015). Lockett’s IV line was placed improperly, which allowed the chemical used to kill him to seep into tissues instead of his vein. Since Lockett was not fully sedated, he woke up midway through the procedure and tried to get off the table and move around.

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The prisoner is secured on a gurney with lined ankle and wrist restraints. A cardiac monitor and a stethoscope are attached, and two saline intravenous lines are started, one in each arm. The inmate is then covered with a sheet. The saline intravenous lines are turned off, and Sodium Thiopental is injected, causing the inmate to fall into a deep sleep. The second chemical agent, Pancuronium Bromide, a muscle relaxer, follows.

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The lethal injection executions illustrates a constitutional violation of the branch 's overreach as described by the 8th amendment due to its cases bring either successful in the execution or providing sufferable pain to death row inmates. One of the current problems in the Judicial branch is the use of lethal injection towards execution sessions. Lethal injection is an injection that is administered for the purpose of euthanasia and capital punishment. There are two methods of lethal injection today, one using a three drug protocol and the 2nd being the large dose of barbiturate. Lethal injection is used for capital punishment as it follows the 8th amendment we have today.

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Even though lethal injections are described to be the most humane and least repugnant, there has still been a few problems where it turns out to be the opposite. Lethal injections originally contain a mixture of three drugs called pancuronium bromide, potassium chloride, and sodium thiopental. The first drug used was sodium thiopental (short term anesthesia) with the job of putting the inmate to deep sleep for a few seconds. Then pancuronium bromide, also referred as pavulon is introduced to the body relaxing all muscles and paralyzing the entire skeleton including the inmate’s diaphragm and the entire respiratory system causing death by asphyxiation. Lastly potassium chloride is injected stopping the heart.

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The question of whether or not a method of execution violates the rights of an individual stands on whether or not an individual is subjected to “cruel and unusual punishment.” U.S. Const. amend. VIII. The Supreme Court has held that a method of execution does not need to be free of pain, but it must not present a substantial risk of pain or harm.

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Drugs such as, Beta Blockers to slow the heart rate, Narcotic Analgesics for a powerful stimulant, and Etorphine as a tranquilizer are commonly used (Andrew, e. 2004). With the use of illegal drugs and harsh training schedules, it is dramatically increasing the death toll each

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While the firing squad method seems to be the coolest classic method to kill someone, the firing squad method can only be used in Utah. The lethal injection method is not just one injection. It is three. The first one is an anesthetic. This is to ensure that the inmate will not feel any pain.

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There are many different types of euthanasia animal shelters use to put down animals, the most popular type of euthanasia is called intravenous injection, which is a poison containing sodium pentobarbital. This poison is injected in the heart or leg without any pain killers. The animal is put to sleep and in some cases, they wake up when they feel the pain and start to struggle and fight the vet. Depending on the animals' size, depends on the number of injections. This process is also used for animals that are euthanized due to disease or injures.

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Another reason why capital punishment is not justified is that it harms the government’s economy. Capital punishment actually causes the trials to become more expensive. Capital punishment cost have increased over the years. This can be due to several different factors. According to Maurice Chammah there are six main reasons why the cost of capital punishment has increased over the years.

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The death penalty, is the loss of life, which is induced by different tactics. The most common methods in the United States is lethal injection, hanging, firing squad, and the electric chair. The most chosen method by inmates is lethal injection. Lethal injection consists of the inmate being strapped to an operating table or gurney and a trained medical doctor will place two needles into the veins of the arms(Death Penalty Information Center).

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