Saturday, November 14, 2009

Ohio executions back on with 1-drug method

COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Ohio's death chamber is set to resume executions next month using a single drug that has been used in the U.S. to euthanize pets but never to put condemned prisoners to death.

Barring legal challenges, condemned inmate Kenneth Biros is scheduled Dec. 8 to be the first prisoner in the nation to be executed using a single dose of the drug thiopental sodium instead of the combination of three drugs that the state had been using.

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Clearly the current three-drug cocktail has led to several botched executions. Changing to a procedure that is more reliable is a way to minimize the suffering of the condemned. While executions are becoming increasingly rare, if we are going to conduct them, they should be swift, painless, and sure.

LA Times Editorial 
NY Times Analysis

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