I believe that Florida Corrections are in the market to mystify the whole sick process;

Historically, the hood was used as a further inducement to terrorize the poor guy about to get his broken on the wheel, or get his head cut off. This is a purely an Anglo-Saxon-Germanic thing, the French executioners NEVER wore hoods. When executions became private, there was no need for the executioner to hide his shame at killing, but the custom persisted well up to now. With witnesses of all stripes looking at the execution, most states do not hood the execution, but do not hide him. Thus Bob Elliott and John Hoover, two of New York's executioners, never wore hoods to hide their identity, but were not recognized as such for a long time, and for Hoover, never.

I believe that Florida Corrections are in the market to mystify the whole sick process; if he believes in what he is doing, the hangman, like Pierpont in England should be public. The old Irish hangman used to wear a Hunchback of Notre Dame suit, complete with hump back and bizarre face mask, to scare more of his victims. .

Partly because deep inside, the executioner knows that what s/he is doing wrong, he cannot look the victim in the face, or be identified. Florida in its fantasy world is asking a doctor to do the opposite of what medicine is all about, and hooding the killer-doctor is just part of the phantasy. While Desfournouux and Sampson were both only active, were clearly identifiable with the public executions in France, I am not aware of them either getting serious threats, let alone serious ones, in their long careers. Nor did Gröppler. Hitler's headsman wearing formal attire, white gloves and a high hat. Only the guillotine is Goon proof, but then again, pour goons can even screw that up.

Shame on those willing doctors! Shame on Florida culture that demands something as grotesque that it was discarded in such executing states as Ohio, New York and California.

If he wants to be an executioner--I don't know why-- let him be proud of it and go public; he can reach in the chest and grab out a livingheart.

Ol Grouch
Charlotte NYSA