In January , Florida abandoned its use of midazolam as the first drug in its three-drug protocol and replaced it with etomidate. Two states have used midazolam in a two-drug protocol consisting of midazolam and hydromorphone: Ohio Dennis McGuire and Arizona Joseph Wood. After its botched execution of McGuire, Ohio abandoned its use of midazolam in a two-drug protocol, but then in October decided to keep midazolam in a three-drug protocol.
In December , Arizona abandoned its use of midazolam in either a two-drug or a three-drug protocol. Three states have, at some point, proposed using midazolam in a two-drug protocol Louisiana, Kentucky, and Oklahoma but none of those states has followed through with that formula. Some states have proposed multiple protocols. Missouri administered midazolam to inmates as a sedative before the official execution protocol began. Nevada has also announced that it will use fentanyl in combination with other drugs to carry out executions.
South Dakota carried out 2 executions in October , obtaining drugs from compounders. Missouri first used pentobarbital from a compounding pharmacy in the November 20, execution of Joseph Franklin.
Texas first used pentobarbital from a compounding pharmacy in the execution of Michael Yowell on October 9, The lethal injection has been the primary means of executing condemned Americans for decades - but its use remains controversial.
Support for the death penalty is at an all-time low. Britain effectively abolished it in , despite a Gallup poll at the time finding that more than two-thirds of the population still supported it. That decline is mirrored in the US. Hanging was the most common form of capital punishment in the US until the s.
Then, the electric chair became the most widespread method. In , the first execution by lethal injection was carried out by the state of Texas, after which it gradually replaced the electric chair across the nation. Today, other methods are very rarely used. Only Utah occasionally executes individuals by firing squad — the last time was in Perhaps surprisingly, though, there is still no consensus on the exact combination of drugs and dosages to use for the lethal injection.
The drug midazolam — a sedative used by several states to cause unconsciousness — has proved so controversial that, in , Alabama inmate Thomas D Arthur asked to be executed by firing squad. The Supreme Court denied the appeal, and Arthur was executed by lethal injection in May In Arkansas, the lethal injection comprises three chemicals: midazolam, to sedate; vecuronium bromide, to paralyse the muscles; and potassium chloride, to stop the heart.
Each of these is delivered at a dose that could theoretically kill the inmate; however, each drug has drawbacks. At the time of execution, the inmate is strapped to a gurney, and IV tubes are inserted into both arms. The Arkansas procedure uses two IV sites. This is partly to protect against 'vein failure'. The first drug given to the inmate is midazolam, a sedative, which is administered to render the inmate unconscious and prevent them from feeling any suffering.
Midazolam is a benzodiazepine. At low doses it has an anti-anxiety effect. At around 10mg, it knocks the inmate unconscious.
On death row in Arkansas, the dose is mg. Statements from various pharmaceutical companies barring the use of their drugs in executions are also provided. Judge Stephen Friot of the U.
District Court f…. For the Media. For Educators. Fact Sheet. Executions Lethal Injection Though lethal injection has been used for a majority of the executions carried out in the modern era, it is plagued by problematic executions and controversy.
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