How the lethal injection drugs work: (ABC News)
This injection contains a triple overdose of anesthesia drugs: sodium thiopental, which induces unconsciousness; pancuronium bromide, which paralyzes the breathing muscles; and potassium chloride, which stops the heart.
The drugs are usually mixed and injected by prison guards with no medical training. Furthermore, there can also be problems inserting the needle into the patient’s vein. For an execution, the person inserting the IV into the prisoner often has little training or experience. This part of the procedure is sometimes made more difficult by the fact that many death row inmates have scarred, tortuous veins from previous drug abuse.
Recent Cases Suggest Cruel and Unusual Punishment
In Diaz’s case, the needles in both arms missed their targets. As a result, not only did he suffer a slow and agonizing death because the drugs were not delivered into his veins, but he was also chemically burned by the highly concentrated drugs flowing under his skin. This was illustrated by 11-and-12-inch chemical burns on his arms revealed during his autopsy.
American countries that have not abolished the death penalty yet:
Antigua y Barbuda, Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Cuba, Dominique, Jamaica, Guatemala, Guyana, St. Christopher and Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and Grenadines, United States of America, Trinidad and Tobago.
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