Shot to death, and hung from a noose, inmates in certain states can still be executed by, what some would call, cruel and unusual punishment. About 37 states could carry out a death sentense.
UNK Assistant Professor of Criminal Justice, Beth Wiersma said, "The Supreme Court has never ruled that the death penalty itself is unconstitutional, it's just that the means to carry it out are questionable."
There are still 5 methods of the death penalty in the US including lethal injection, firing squad, the gas chamber, hanging, and the electric chair. UNK Assistant Professor Beth Wiersma says there's one big difference with Nebraska.
"Of those states that have the death penalty, every state has lethal injection except Nebraska, so the problem with Nebraska is why the Supreme Court ruled it was cruel and unusual as our sole means, electrocution, and we don't have an alternative to that," Wiersma explained.
Of the 37 states with lethal injection about 18 can use one of the other methods, by an inmate's request, or if lethal injection can't be administered.
"If you do some further reading on the effects on the person, what happens to the body during these processes, they're all gruesome other than lethal injection," Wiersma described.
The State Legislature didn't move a bill to deem the death penalty unconstitutional, so Governor Heineman's moving to replace the electric chair.
"25 plus states already use lethal injection, we have every reason to believe it is legally constitutional, we've talked to the attorney general about that, so I'm going to remain optimistic that's where we're headed," said Nebraska Governor Dave Heineman.
Though public support has gone down for the death penalty, researchers still try to perfect these methods.
"It's a science so to speak, I don't know if there's a more humane way to execute someone or not or if we'll come up with more humane ways. But I'm thinking that eventually as society evolves even more, we'll start to look at it as barbaric," Wiersma concluded.
Reporter's Notes by Jake Wasikowski:
- The U.S. Supreme Court is deciding whether or not lethal injection is constitutional, and a ruling is expected before June.
- In the 1800's, hanging was the traditional method of carrying out a death sentence. The electric chair was introduced in the 1890's.
- A firing squad was used as recently as 1996 in Utah, since a death row inmate requested it.
- To carry out a lethal injection, 3 drugs are used. The first needle renders an inmate unconscious. The 2nd drug paralyzes their muscles, and the final drug stops the heart.
- To find out more information on a certain state's death penalty go to: http://www.deathpenaltyinfo.org/article.php?did=245
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