The Supreme Court ruled those sentenced to death in the U.S. justice system do not enjoy a legal right to die without pain, in the case of a person with a rare disease.
The opinion issued on Monday by the Supreme Court was decided 5 to 4, with the conservative majority winning out.
This means the constitutional prohibition on “cruel and unusual” punishment methods still restricts types of capital punishment that would be akin to torture.
The majority decision noted that hanging, for example, was ruled as a legal form of capital punishment, even though it is not painless.
Russell Bucklew, on death row for a 1996 murder, faces lethal injection in Missouri and had appealed against this method being used.
In his appeal to the court, Bucklew argued that the injection would cause unique pain because he suffers from a medical condition known as cavernous hemangioma.
He argued the injection would interact with his tumours and cause additional pain.
He asked to be put to death by nitrogen gas, though the court noted this method is not used in Missouri or any other state.
Neil Gorsuch, the judge who wrote the majority opinion, indicated it was not clear this method was in any event less painful.
The federal government and the military, in addition to most states, have laws allowing for capital punishment in specific cases, usually related to first-degree murder.
Leave a Reply