Dayton, Ohio recently hosted the execution of Dennis McGuire, who was convicted for the rape and murder of a pregnant newlywed back in 1989. Unlike typical approaches used when putting one to death, McGuire’s seemed torturous. It took around 25 minutes between the time he was injected with a newer set of drugs and his time of death. Check out why after the jump.
One week before his scheduled execution, McGuire’s lawyer, Allen Bohnert, attempted to block it. The reason: McGuire was to be one of the first executed by way of “Air Hunger.” The previously untried method caused him to suffer “agony and terror” while struggling to catch his breath.
Instead of the traditional dose of drugs injected for “immediate death,” prison officials injected McGuire with –both– midazolam, a sedative; and hydromorphone, a painkiller. This method was picked up once supplies of the drug used previously, was declared off limits for capital punishment by the manufacturer.
McGuire, 53, made loud snorting noises during one of the longest executions since Ohio resumed capital punishment in 1999. Nearly 25 minutes passed between the time the lethal drugs began flowing and McGuire was pronounced dead at 10:53 a.m.
McGuire’s daughter witnessed the execution and now plans to sue. Ironic, especially when you think of how he ended up on the table in the first place.
