Ethics
Out of the Death penalty methods still offered by the US government which is the most Ethical?
Lethal Injection- Because based on the list of botched executions by Professor Michael Radelot, of the botched executions that occur from the injection they are commonly due to the doctors performing the procedure not being able to find a vein that will work ("Botched Executions")
What Amendment allows the death penalty
8th Amendment
What method is the most violent compared to the lethal injection
The electric chair, which can involve charred flesh and bloodied clothes as it can go on for more than one cycle lasting minutes, and could be warranted as cruel and unusual punishment
What is the cost of the lethal injection
$90
This method is used most of the time to carry out capital punishment
The lethal injection
Commonly considered botched due to?
The inmate being cut open or probed in multiple places to find a vein without general anesthesia leaving them in pain or violent reactions to the drugs as well as the drugs not circulating properly or even solidifying in the IV tube
an example is: John Wayne Gacy who was executed by lethal injection, it was considered botched due to the chemical reaction that solidified in IV (meaning they had to change the tubing before continuing)
What 2008 Supreme Court case upheld the use of the lethal injection?
Baze v. Rees
According to Cornell University:
Why may the lethal injection be seen as worse then the Gas Chamber?
The lungs fill with fluid ("Gasping For Air")
Why is the Lethal Injection more cost friendly?
The cost is set in stone for each inmate
What states offer the least ethical methods: Electric Chair and the Lethal Gas
Electrocution: Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Kentucky, Mississippi, Oklahoma, South Carolina and Tennessee
Lethal Gas: Alabama,Arizona,California,Mississippi,Missouri,Oklahoma and Wyoming
Why is it considered ethical?
The use of anesthesia which is used in the three drug cocktail
What 2015 Supreme Court case argued the legality of the lethal injection
Glossip v. Gross
Specifically the court case was about the introduction to a 4-drug cocktail and how the new drug was causing inmates (only three inmates) to wake up during the process and if it violated the 8th Amendment they found it did not as there wasn't evidence that it was cruel and unusual punishment as they want it to be as painless as it can and there wasn't sufficient evidence that the inmates were in significant pain
What does the lethal injection cause the inmate to die of, that may seem more ethical then the other methods
Cardiac Arrest
On average what is the cost to house an inmate on death row
$4,157,692 and $54,285.50 per inmate (Cohen 32)
What method is allowed by the most states to be used
The lethal injection
It is allowed by:
Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Delaware,Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Washington, Wyoming, and the U.S. Military, U.S. Government
*This doesn't account for the states that have stopped using Capital Punishment
Why aren't the other methods considered ethical
They could be argued as cruel due to lack of pain management
How does the supreme court feel about the lethal injection
They approve of it even though they commonly don't have all the same beliefs
Why may the firing squid be seen as unethical compared to the injection?
They may miss a vital spot which can cause the inmate more pain then the injection can
The cost for the electric chair depends on...
The state and the inmate
When did the lethal injection become the preference?
The 90s
Could other methods that haven't been implemented be seen as ethical in the US?
No, there is no ethical method that is used that hasn't been implemented by the US
Do all state courts agree with the methods that the US allows?
No, they do not as they see some of the methods to be unethical and that they violate the 8th Amendment
Is Saudi Arabia's method of beheading more ethical then the lethal injection?
Although Quick it is not ethical as the US agreed when the decision to implement the guillotine was denied as it isn't an ethical method to chop a persons head off
What methods cost may depend on inflation
Hanging and Firing Squid
What may be the reason for the injection being the preference
It is commonly more ethical and is cost friendly for prisons