Ohio Killer, Dennis McGuire, Executed By New, Untested Drug
Ohio killer, Dennis McGuire, was executed Thursday with a combination of drugs never before tested and used in the US. The use of this new drug cocktail has stirred up quiet the controversy considering it took over 25 minutes for McGuire to finally pass.
Dennis McGuire’s attorney, Allen Bohnert, called the execution a “failed, agonizing experiment.” According to ABC News, Bohnert went on to say that “the people of the state of Ohio should be appalled at what was done here today in their names.”
Reports state that Bohner had attempted to block Dennis McGuire’s execution. He argued that the untested drug combination of midazolam, a sedative; and the painkiller hydromorphone, could lead to a medical phenomenon known as “air hunger”. According to Bohner, this phenomenon could cause McGuire to suffer “agony and terror” while struggling to catch his breath.
According to CNN, McGuire appeared to gasp and convulse for roughly 10 minutes before he died by the new lethal injection.
Dennis McGuire gasped for breath for about 10 min. before death. His children and daughter-in-law were crying and visibly upset.
— Sheila Gray (@SheilaGrayTV) January 16, 2014
Dennis McGuire was convicted for the 1989 murder of Joy Stewart, a 22-year-old pregnant woman according to USA Today. It reportedly took 10 months for the case to be solved. According to ABC News, McGuire, who was currently jailed on an unrelated assault, told police that he had information on Stewart’s case in hopes that he could improve his legal situation. DNA later confirmed his guilt in the case, which then landed him the death penalty.
McGuire’s death has angered many. Those who witnessed his death believe he wasn’t killed in a humane way. Dayton Defense lawyer, Jon Paul Rion, said that “the family is deeply disturbed by McGuire’s execution,” and believe it violated his constitutional rights. “All citizens have a right to expect that they will not be treated or punished in a cruel and unusual way,” Rion said. “Today’s actions violated that constitutional expectation.”
“What’s happening is shocking. We’re seeing the underside of the death penalty: irresponsible behavior by states and the realization that there’s not a good way to kill people,” says Diann Rust-Tierney, director of the National Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty. “This case and others are going to increase and galvanize those who oppose capital punishment and cause the public and policymakers to say. ‘What are we doing?'”
An attorney for McGuire’s family has said that they plan to sue the state over what happened.
[Image via Shutterstock/bikeriderlondon]
