Missouri argues that lethal injections do not require assistance of doctor

ST. LOUIS: Lethal injection executions in Missouri are humane and constitutional and do not require the assistance of a doctor trained in anesthesia, the state has argued in filings with a federal appeal court.

The filings are appealing a federal judge's order that the state must have a doctor to oversee lethal injections in the state, a ruling that has effectively halted executions in Missouri.

State attorneys for the Missouri Department of Corrections argued in the filings Monday that it may be impossible to find a doctor willing to participate in executions, because it is inconsistent with their ethical duties to promote and protect life.

The 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has scheduled the case for oral arguments on Jan. 10.

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U.S. District Judge Fernando Gain, Jr.'s original ruling concerned the case of Michael Taylor, who came within hours of being executed in January for killing Kansas City teenager Ann Harrison. Taylor's attorneys have until Dec. 26 to file a written response to the state's arguments.

They have argued that three drugs given in succession during lethal injections in Missouri and most other states can constitute cruel and unusual punishment if administered improperly.

If the initial anesthetic does not take hold, subsequent drugs that paralyze the condemned prisoner and stop his heart can cause excruciating pain, they have argued.

Gain ordered Missouri to take several steps safeguarding against such an occurrence, initially requiring a board-certified anesthesiologist to oversee Missouri's lethal injections. When the state could find no one willing to take on the role, Gain moderated his order to require a doctor trained in anesthesia.

The state argued in Monday's filing that Gain's order requiring a doctor's assistance at executions exceeds the court's power. "No court has ever found that assistance of a doctor is constitutionally required at an execution," the state argued.

The state's attorneys argued that the Corrections Department can execute prisoners constitutionally under the safeguards of its recently adopted protocol. They said a nurse, pharmacist or emergency medical technician can oversee the procedures.

Executions also have been halted in Delaware, California and New Jersey as those states, too, face challenges to injection procedures. Thirty-seven of the 38 states with the death penalty punish by lethal injection.