That is the amount of time it took the State of Ohio to execute its latest prisoner. He gasped, heaved and choked visibly to witnesses, until it finally was all over.
I have no background in juris prudence, but I do have some ability in the use of the English language and if this act of the State of Ohio is not cruel and unusual punishment, then I do not understand the meaning of those common words.
There are options. Execution by guillotine results in almost instantaneous death, although it does leave a mess. The firing squad can be improved with laser-sighted weapons to achieve a similar, more humane death. I don’t even think that the electric chair, Ohio’s former choice for executions, took 26 minutes to render someone’s brain tissue and blood to inanimate masses of cooked flesh.
Better yet, why not join the rest of the civilized world and do away with the death penalty? The death penalty does not make a difference in the commission of capital crimes. The only reason for the death penalty is vengeful punishment.
Surely, the State of Ohio is morally above mere vengance! At this point, we can hope that law suits brought on behalf of the latest victim of State-sponsored murder will cost the State of Ohio so much that its barbarism will be just too wastefully expensive. Even the political right surely cannot object to such savings of the tax payers hard-earned money.
Sanchismos 