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U.S. | 'I comfort death row inmates in their final moments - the execution room is like a house of horrors'

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Reverend Jeff Hood, 40, wants to help condemned inmates 'feel human again' and vows to continue his efforts to befriend murderers in spite of death threats against his family A reverend who has made it his mission to comfort death row inmates in their final days has revealed the '"moral torture" his endeavor entails. Reverend Dr. Jeff Hood, 40, lives with his wife and five children in Little Rock, Arkansas. But away from his normal home life, he can suddenly find himself holding the shoulder of a murderer inside an execution chamber, moments away from the end of their life. 

Death row inmates challenge Florida's use of a new drug in lethal injections

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Lethal injection
TALLAHASSEE, Florida — Death row inmates are asking the courts to stop use of a new drug being used in lethal injections.

Amended lawsuits have been filed in U.S. District Courts in four cities claiming use of midazolam hydrochloride as the first drug in the three-drug mix leaves the condemned at risk for severe pain during an execution.

Florida used the new mix during the execution of William Happ on Oct. 15. It was the first time it was used in an execution and Happ didn't file any appeals challenging its use.

The seven inmates challenging the use had already sued to stop the previous mix of drugs Florida was using before the change. The filings this week seek to amend the original suits to reflect the new procedure.

Source: Associated Press, October 29, 2013
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