Improper paperwork thwarts shipment of lethal injection drugs to Nebraska

[Omaha Steve]

Source: Omaha World Herald

By Joe Duggan

LINCOLN – Improper paperwork thwarted an effort by Nebraska prison officials to import a disputed shipment of lethal injection drugs in early September.

Despite warnings from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration that it is illegal to import sodium thiopental, the state proceeded with plans to obtain the drug. However, improper paperwork provided by the drug exporter prompted FedEx to return the shipment before it got out of India, said Jim McCluskey, a spokesman for FedEx.

Earlier this year, Corrections officials in Nebraska paid more than $50,000 to purchase the sodium thiopental and another drug called pancuronium bromide from a supplier in India. The state’s supply of the drugs had expired.

Gov. Pete Ricketts has repeatedly said he remains confident the drugs will be allowed in, but the FDA says the sodium thiopental is no longer approved for use in this country. The drugs are part of the state’s three-drug protocol necessary to carry out an execution.

Stay with Omaha.com for more on this developing story.

Also see this earlier story in LBN: Death penalty opponents file lawsuit saying petition drive should be invalidated: http://www.democraticunderground.com/10141209248

Read more: http://www.omaha.com/news/nebraska/improper-paperwork-thwarts-shipment-of-lethal-injection-drugs-to-nebraska/article_067c8e3c-5d87-11e5-afe7-8baa35e15483.html

[jmowreader]

1. They want to commit a crime to get the things to punish one?

[LiberalArkie]

2. You know they are conservatives because the concept of obeying the law is foreign to them

[davidpdx]

3. Two things

1) They are buying drugs from India. That really boosts my confidence that they are safe.

2) They are trying to import an illegal drug. It sounds like it's time to send some people to jail.

[jmowreader]

4. Two things

1) Them not being safe is kind of the point - they're trying to kill people with this shipment.

2) True dat.

Strange thing is, these prison officials have known for years two very important (to them, at least) things:

Thing A: The Germans don't want their anesthetics being used in executions

and

Thing B: Germany is where anesthetics come from.

Which leads to the obvious question: If you can't get the drugs you need to execute people, why did you assholes not change your execution procedure to use something you CAN get, like guns, ropes or carbon monoxide?

[davidpdx]

5. Well on them not being safe, if the drug did not do what they are suppose to

then the courts could step in and stop the executions. It's still a product problem. Instead of killing someone fairly quickly maybe it makes them foam at the mouth and go into convulsions for an hour before they die. What if the person goes into convulsions so bad they break their back.

Unfortunately if getting the drugs becomes a problem states may go back to the more (and I hate to use this phrase) old-fashion ways like hangings or firing squads.

I'm sure there are some Republican governors that would like that so much they'd beat off to it like it were porn.