Stop the execution train

The Tennessean, Nashville, Tenn.: If the state of Tennessee has its way, it will put 10 people to death in a period of 18 months between April 22, 2014, and Nov. 17, 2015.

The federal public defender’s office in Nashville has doubts that any of the 10 is a solid case for the death penalty — if there is such a thing as a solid case for institutionalized cruelty.

But let’s assume for a moment that all 10 did, in fact, commit the heinous crimes they have been convicted of.

The state is ill-equipped to mete out their sentences in a way that would remotely fulfill the guarantees of the U.S. Constitution. “Cruel and unusual” will be the order of the day.

The people of Tennessee will become the vile thing that we are trying to extinguish — and we will do so over and over.

Advocates for the death penalty can argue that our capital inmates have had years (years behind bars) added to their lives while the state Correction Department struggled to carry out executions. In the meantime, correction officials have clumsily sought to find a lethal injection protocol as supplies of court-approved drugs ran out and courts rejected the same protocol in other states.

Other states are putting executions on hold because lethal injections are proving to be tantamount to torture. Not Tennessee; its correctional system, with the help of state Supreme Court justices who suddenly appear to be worried about job security, can’t wait to start the intravenous drip.

We see how the pursuit of lethal drugs has turned state officials into ruthless lawbreakers. How can these executions come out well for anyone?