Problems Occurred in One-Third of U.S. Executions This Year

Execution by non-medical personnel takes long and is sometimes postponed
18 executions in 6 states... Death penalty gradually shrinking

The scene of an execution chamber in the United States. Photo by AP·Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Hyunjung] A report has revealed that about one-third of the executions carried out in the United States this year encountered problems.

On the 17th (local time), the British BBC cited a report released by the Death Penalty Information Center (DPIC), a U.S. nonprofit organization, to report this fact.

According to DPIC, there were a total of 20 execution attempts in the U.S. this year, of which 7 cases had noticeable issues or took an excessively long time.

For example, executioners in Alabama took three hours to administer the lethal injection, marking the longest lethal injection in U.S. history.

In four states?Idaho, Ohio, Tennessee, and South Carolina?executions were postponed because executioners were unable to carry out the procedures.

Michael Benja, a professor at Case Western Reserve University School of Law who has defended death row inmates, told the BBC, "The main reason for execution failures is that although a medical execution model like lethal injection is used, it is performed by non-medical personnel."

He added, "Executioners have not received proper training to handle problems, and many death row inmates have medical histories such as illnesses or drug use, which causes technical difficulties in administering the injection."

Although DPIC maintains a neutral stance on the death penalty system, the report pointed out that executioners are incompetent, do not properly follow procedures, or that there are inherent problems in the execution process itself.

Robert Dunham, Executive Director of DPIC, said, "Forty years after the introduction of lethal injection, state governments have proven that they cannot administer lethal injections without risk of failure," adding, "Death row inmates, their families, execution witnesses, and correctional officers should not suffer trauma from botched executions."

According to DPIC, 18 executions were carried out in six states in the U.S. this year. Among these, executions in Texas and Oklahoma accounted for more than half of the total. This is the lowest number since 1991 when considering only years unaffected by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Regarding this, the BBC assessed that the death penalty is gradually losing its place in the United States. Of the 18 executed, 8 were people of color: 5 African Americans, 1 Asian American, 1 Native American, and 1 Latino.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.