Nebraska's three-drug cocktail challenged

Death Penalty Opponents Vow Lengthy Battle

Expert: Inmates Suffer When Given 3-Drug Injection

Death penalty opponents have vowed lengthy legal battles if the state adopts a 3-drug cocktail to carry out death sentences.

As the state sets up protocols to administer lethal injections, many are questioning just how humane is the method.

A death penalty expert who testified at a public hearing Monday said Nebraska intends to paralyze people before the state kills them.

"6 out of the last 11 people executed in California were likely awake and conscious as the excruciatingly painful potassium chloride entered their veins," said Ty Alpers of the Death Penalty Clinic.

After a botched execution in September, Ohio switched to a single strong does of anesthesia. It's similar to how animals are euthanized.

"There a so many problems with what Nebraska is trying to do here," said Nebraska Civil Liberties Union's Amy Miller.

The organization and others detailed their concerns in written testimony to the Department of Corrections.

Only 2 people, both death penalty opponents, came to the microphone.

One was Marilyn Felion. Felion was with Nebraska inmate Robert Williams when he was executed in 1997.

"What is it about us people that we must continue to kill?" Felion said.

Lincoln attorney Rick Boucher said the majority of Nebraskans support he death penalty.

"Lethal injection, because it's been used in a several states for a number of years, is more humane. Is it perfect? I think that verdict remains to be determined," Boucher said.

Attorneys representing some of Nebraska's death row inmates listened closely during the hearing. The Department of Corrections will now review the testimony and finalize its procedures.

Both the governor and the attorney general must sign off on the procedures before they take effect.

Source: KETV News, Nov. 17, 2009

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Death Penalty Critics Question Plan for Lethal Injection

It's the same 3-drug cocktail other states have used to kill prisoners on death row for decades. But that doesn't mean Nebraska's plan for lethal injection has come without controversy.

State officials heard from the public Monday, and a recent case in Ohio has some calling for change.

A new method for dishing out the ultimate punishment brings no comfort to some death penalty opponents.

Marylyn Felion witnessed Nebraska's last execution in 1997. "It's difficult for me to make a distinction between one protocol or another, between one method of execution or another. The bottom line is, we're going to kill somebody," she said.

After the state Supreme Court ruled electrocution cruel and unusual punishment, lawmakers adopted lethal injection, but left it up to the Department of Correctional Services to come up with the details.

In five pages, officials recommend using a three-drug combination. The first would knock out a condemned inmate, the second would cause paralysis, and the third, death, by stopping the person's heart.

It's a commonly used method, now drawing fresh criticism. "If you paralyze someone before you execute them, then there's no way to tell whether the execution is going as it's supposed to go or whether it's going horribly awry," said Ty Alper of the University of California Berkeley School ofLaw.

Advocates say the deadly mix would be illegal to use to euthanize dogs and cats in 42 of 50 states.

Plus, they argue a botched September execution in Ohio will pave the way for new legal challenges. That state abruptly switched last week to a onedrug technique, that essentially amounts to an overdose of anesthesia. "I don't think any state wanted to be the first to get rid of a practice that they've been clinging to for years, but now that Ohio has said we're going to do this, we're going to make executions more humane, I would hope that Nebraska officials would take a serious look at that and do the same," Alper said.

The proposed protocol would also require training for corrections workers and "consciousness checks" before an inmate is put to death.

The state estimates the new method won't have any financial impact.

Officials will now review the plan for possible changes and send it to the governor and attorney general for approval.

Source: KPTM News, Nov. 17, 2009

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