Over the past several years, the most widely publicized issue in capital litigation has been
the constitutional status of states' lethal injection protocols. Death row inmates have not …

Physicians routinely are involved in capital punishment procedures in both medical and non-
medical capacities. This creates debate over whether physicians participating in capital …

In an opinion dissenting from a Supreme Court decision to deny review in a death penalty
case, Supreme CourtJusticeHarryBlackmunfamouslywrote,“Fromthis day forward, I no …

In this issue of Mayo Clinic Proceedings, David Waisel, Associate Professor of
Anesthesiology, Harvard Medical School, analyzes physician participation in capital …

LEGAL EXECUTION BY LETHAL INJECTION HAS MADE NA-tional headlines during the
past 2 years because pris-oners have argued that it poses an unnecessary risk of pain as …

To circumvent objections that the death penalty was “cruel and unusual punishment” and
therefore a violation of the Eighth Amendment to the Constitution, advocates proposed lethal …

In the September 2007 issue of Mayo Clinic Proceedings, a commentary and 2 editorials
addressed the issue of physician participation in capital punishment executions. 1-3 A …

Foreword On January 14, 2008, the Journal hosted a videotaped roundtable discussion of
the issues raised by Baze v. Rees, currently before the Supreme Court, that asks whether …

The death penaltyis legal in 36 states, and physicians are expected to attend and participate
in executions. Yet, every major medical and health-related organization opposes physician …

Despite objections by many professional organizations, 1–8 the participation of physicians
and nurses in capital punishment continues and is likely to become more common in the …