Lethal injection uses three sequential drugs to cause fast death

Evidence

The medical technicians get the lethal drugs from the pharmacy, insert the intravenous lines for the syringes into the inmate’s veins, and attach electrocardiogram electrodes to monitor the inmate’s heart rate. The actual execution involves three different drugs in lethal doses: sodium thiopental, an anesthetic that suppresses death spasms; pancuronium bromide, which stops respiration; and potassium chloride, which stops the heartbeat. The executioner pushes the plungers on the syringes one by one so that each drug enters the bloodstream. If this is done correctly, death comes fast. The disinhibitory power of diffusion of responsibility through task fractionaliza-tion is reflected in the remarks of a guard in San Quentin who strapped down the offenders’ legs to the electric chair in 126 executions (Marine, 1990). — Albert Bandura, Moral Disengagement, 1936

Categorization

• DEFINE: Explains the three-drug lethal injection protocol and each drug’s specific function.