The False Evolution of Execution Methods

Jacob Geller・2 minutes read

The iron maiden may have been fabricated to entice museum visitors, and efforts to professionalize hanging resulted in botched executions before the advent of more modern methods of capital punishment. The transition to the electric chair was influenced by the desire to move executions behind prison walls, reflecting changing societal attitudes towards death penalties.

Insights

  • The iron maiden, often portrayed as a medieval torture device, was actually a fabrication from the 1800s, created to attract museum visitors with its gruesome image.
  • The introduction of the electric chair in 1890 marked a shift towards more private and modern methods of execution, reflecting changing societal views on capital punishment, transitioning from public spectacles to behind-prison-wall occurrences.

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Summary

00:00

Evolution of Execution Methods in America

  • The iron maiden, often depicted as a medieval torture device, did not actually exist historically before the 1800s, and was likely fabricated as antiques to entice museum visitors.
  • In 1888, New York formed a commission to determine the most humane method of carrying out death sentences, exploring various execution methods including the iron maiden, burial alive, and hanging.
  • Hanging, a method with a long history, was often a public spectacle meant to display the power of the state and was analyzed by Michel Foucault in the context of public executions.
  • Lynchings in America, particularly in the South, were public displays of white supremacy, often done with the implied consent of law enforcement, despite being nominally illegal.
  • Efforts to professionalize hanging included constructing purpose-made gallows and calculating the ideal fall height to ensure a quick death by breaking the neck, but botched executions were common.
  • A cultural shift in the late 19th century saw a new middle class viewing public executions as base and vulgar, leading to a desire to move executions behind prison walls.
  • In 1890, New York introduced the electric chair as a modern alternative to hanging, with the belief that it provided a more humane and less barbaric method of execution.
  • The introduction of the electric chair was influenced by an incident in Buffalo where a dockworker was accidentally killed by a massive electric shock, showcasing the deadly potential of electricity.
  • The 1888 commission on humane execution concluded that death by a powerful electric current was the most rapid and humane method available for carrying out death sentences.
  • The shift towards the electric chair marked a transition from public executions to more private, modern methods of capital punishment, reflecting evolving societal attitudes towards death penalties.

15:13

"History of Execution Methods in America"

  • Thomas Edison supported the electric chair running on alternating current to establish it as a deadlier form of electricity.
  • William Kemmler's execution via electric chair took a full eight minutes, with the first shock not being lethal.
  • Despite its initial failures, the electric chair continued to be used in New York and other states, offering less error-prone executions than hanging.
  • The electric chair, while less prone to errors than hanging, had gruesome failures, including victims catching fire during executions.
  • Ruth Snyder's execution in 1928, the first woman executed in New York in the 20th century, was captured in a photograph that ran on the front page of the New York Daily News.
  • The gas chamber, introduced in 1924, aimed for a painless execution but often failed to deliver, causing prolonged and agonizing deaths.
  • Lethal injection was introduced as a more humane method of execution, resembling a medicalized death, but faced opposition from medical associations.
  • The three-drug cocktail used in lethal injections, including sodium thiopental, pancuronium bromide, and potassium chloride, was not thoroughly researched for effectiveness.
  • Lethal injection has the highest botch rate of any execution method, with over 7% of attempts containing failures in protocol or chemistry.
  • Incompetence in finding suitable veins for injection, along with the improper administration of drugs, has led to excruciating and prolonged deaths in lethal injections.

30:27

Lethal injection and racial bias in executions.

  • Pancuronium bromide paralyzes all voluntary muscles, including the lungs and diaphragm, without affecting consciousness or pain perception.
  • The drug prevents movement, speech, and facial expressions, potentially causing suffocation without the ability to convey suffering.
  • Potassium chloride, when injected, can cause cardiac arrest, but pancuronium bromide prevents any indication of pain or distress.
  • The paralytic does not enhance anesthesia or hasten cardiac arrest, primarily serving to make executions visually more appealing.
  • States have faced challenges in obtaining traditional lethal injection drugs, leading to the use of alternatives like midazolam with varying effects.
  • Instances of botched executions have raised concerns, prompting states to obscure more of the process to maintain appearances.
  • Firing squads, despite being allowed in some states, are not a prevalent method due to their lack of subtlety and overt violence.
  • Death row sentencing reveals randomness and racial bias, with black lives being disproportionately affected by capital punishment.
  • The Supreme Court has acknowledged racial discrimination in capital sentencing but has not taken substantial action to address it.
  • Capital punishment rates have been declining, with public opinion increasingly opposing the death penalty due to systemic flaws and injustices.

45:43

"Linking Lynchings to Police Killings in U.S."

  • Researchers found a significant correlation between historical lynchings and current police killings in the United States, even after adjusting for various factors like crime rates and segregation.
  • The legacy of legalized murder in the U.S. is evident in the transition from collective state violence to individual actors like police officers, leading to increased visibility of state power and untouchability.
  • Botched executions, despite being prevalent, have minimal cultural impact due to media coverage treating them as individual errors rather than systemic injustices, perpetuating the assumption of justice in capital punishment.
  • The delegation of barbarism to a self-regulating system, like the justice system, removes individuals from direct involvement in violent decisions, creating a narrative that justifies police killings as necessary and rendering other aspects of the justice system redundant.
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