Death Row prisoner 'disappointed' after execution halted

Ananova ^ | 11th December 2003

[yonif]

A Death Row prisoner has told of his "disappointment" after officials halted his execution 20 minutes before he was to be killed.

Kevin Lee Zimmerman, 42, says he had finished his "last meal" when the US Supreme Court sent word that he could not be executed.

The Texas execution was delayed due to a legal row over one of the drugs used to carry out the death sentence.

He was to have been put to death in Huntsville, Texas, for a fatal stabbing and robbery at a motel in 1987.

"I'm disappointed," Zimmerman told a Texas Department of Criminal Justice spokeswoman.

"I was ready to go. The stay only means 18 more months of this crap."

The US Supreme Court halted the execution of a condemned man after a lawsuit challenged one of the drugs used to carry out the death sentence.

Texas, the first state to execute condemned inmates by injection, uses a combination of three drugs: pancuronium bromide, the barbiturate sodium thiopental and potassium chloride, which causes cardiac arrest.

Citing the constitutional protection against cruel and unusual punishment, the lawsuit sought to stop use of pancuronium bromide - a drug that paralyses muscles.

[yonif]

[blackdog]

The paralysis drug is meant to make the death a bit more calm, non-eventful, and solemn for those observing. The cardiac arrest drug(potasium) causes a lot of gurgling, twisting, and heaving of the chest. Sheesh! Talk about the crazies......

[Freedom4US]

As usual, "cruel and unusual" has been twisted beyond all recognition.

Clearly our death penalty is far more peaceful than anything the convicted meted out to their victims. Do these fine upstanding citizens typically provide a last meal to the soon-to-be murdered? Civilization isn't the default mode for this globe, it really bothers me that society has to reinvent the wheel periodically. I don't relish the idea of jails, capital punishment or anything of the sort.

[Huck]

Hang me, oh, hang me, so I’ll be dead and gone.
Hang me, oh, hang me, so I’ll be dead and gone.
I wouldn’t mind your hangin’, boys but you wait in jail so long.
Lord lord, I been all around this world.


--Trad. arrangement, Grateful Dead

[Vision]

I think he signed the lawsuit.

Otherwise, leave it to the federal government to tell Texas and a prisoner that can't do, what they both want to do.

[CzarNicky]

I'm disappointed for him too.

[TheBattman]

Texas should send a bill to the court for the expenses related to keeping this creep around for another 18 months (or however long he remains alive).

[Ophiucus]

Texas should send a bill to the court for the expenses related to keeping this creep around for another 18 months (or however long he remains alive).

Hhmmm....and what's the price for a length of rope?

[ChemistCat]

My husband is advocating merely sterilizing these people.

Of course, he means to do it in a pressure cooker.

[breakem]

Cruel and unusual now means, hey there may be a problem with that.

I'm going to file a lawsuit to expedite the death penalty since regular delays are also cruel and unusual.

[Ophiucus]

Of course, he means to do it in a pressure cooker.

LOL....that's good. It's similar to my dad's method of "rehabilitation."

[expatpat]

I think it's cruel and unusual punishment to bring a guy up to within 20 mins of his death, and then say: "No, we'll go through it agian another day." Reminds me of a capured scottish rebel that the English hanged at each major town down the road, cutting him down jsut before he pegged out, so they could repeat it at the next town.

[BerniesFriend]

Let's face it..12/10/03 was a crummy day for the supreme court..cowardly punted on cfr..and then scalia..of all judges..gave this killer more time..wow..don't you just sense those days at work when nothing goes right..it sure was in the halls of the supreme court..

[expatpat]

Sorry about the mis-spelings!