Collapsed veins saves man from execution by lethal injection [Modernity!]
God must be laughing, because, Friday, a judge granted Ohio death row inmate Romell Broom a temporary stay of execution until they sort out a problem with his case:
his veins are so collapsed from drug use, the convicted rapist/murderer survived a state attempt to lethally inject him. (Death by electric chair is of course cruel and unusual punishment in our civil America.)
“They were poking 18, 19, 20 times, they went into the arm, the leg, all over the place,” Mr Sweeney said.
“He was trying to help them but it was incredibly painful to the point where he broke down and cried and was totally beaten down,” Mr Sweeney told AFP news agency. ... Only one other person has survived execution in the US. ...
Romell’s lawyers say another attempt would also constitute “cruel an unusual” punishment, and that state only gets one shot. The Plain Dealer also says Romell was convicted based on testimony of two 13-year-olds who fingered him in a line-up. So, you know, a solid case in the Midwest. Keep it classy, Ohio. [Telegraph]
