窒息、嘔吐、抽搐、痛不欲生……想到注射死刑過程中，在生死臨界點可能經歷的這些體驗，美國密蘇里州的死刑犯Russell Bucklew覺得惶惶不可終日。
現年50歲的Russell Bucklew早在1996年就被宣判了死刑，涉及的罪名包括謀殺、強姦和綁架。
(Via Missouri Department of Corrections)
20多年前，Bucklew槍殺了他前女友Stephanie Ray當時的伴侶Michael Sanders，綁架並強姦了Ray，槍傷了Sanders6歲的兒子，並在被捕前槍傷了一名警察。
這個犯下滔天罪行的死刑犯，終於等來了他血債血償的一天。不過，這個患有先天海綿狀血管瘤的罪犯卻申請避免使用注射死刑，改用毒氣死刑，理由是，他的病症導致注射死刑會增加他臨死時的痛苦。
Bucklew argued that his congenital condition, cavernous hemangioma, might cause him excessive pain if he is put to death by lethal injection.Bucklew辯稱，假如使用注射死刑的方式對他執行死刑，他的先天性海綿狀血管瘤（由眾多薄壁血管組成的海綿狀異常血管團）可能導致他極度疼痛。The condition causes blood-filled tumours in his throat, neck and face, which he said could rupture during his execution causing him extreme pain and suffocation.這種疾病在他的喉嚨、頸部和臉上形成充滿血液的血管瘤，據他說，這些血管瘤可能在行刑過程中破裂，導致極度的疼痛和窒息。According to Bucklew, he would feel excessive pain if the state executioner is allowed to use the state's preferred method of a single drug, pentobarbital, applied by needle.據Bucklew稱，假如行刑者使用密蘇里州首選的針筒注射單一藥物戊巴比妥（麻醉劑），他會感到極度痛苦。▲US Supreme Court rules inmate has 'no right to painless death' (via BBC)
美國是首個採用注射死刑的國家。根據不列顛百科全書記載，注射死刑是美國最廣泛採用的死刑執行方式。
Lethal injection—now the most widely used method of execution in the United States—was first adopted by the U.S. state of Oklahoma in 1977, because it was considered cheaper and more humane than either electrocution or lethal gas.注射死刑——目前在美國最為廣泛採用的死刑執行方式——於1977年首次被俄克拉何馬州採用，因為它被認為比電刑和毒氣死刑更便宜、更人性化。Texas was the first state to administer lethal injection, executing Charles Brooks, Jr., on December 2, 1982.1982年12月2日，德克薩斯州首次採用注射死刑對小Charles Brooks執行死刑。By the early 21st century, lethal injection was the sole method of execution in most U.S. states where capital punishment was legal, and it was an option for prisoners in all states.到21世紀初期，大多數將死刑合法化的美國聯邦州把注射死刑定為唯一的死刑執行方式。在其他一些州，注射死刑也是可選項之一。▲Lethal injection (via britannica.com)
儘管注射死刑的引入是出於人道的考慮，通常情況下，注射死刑的效果類似於安樂死，可也有例外，注射死刑不但沒有減輕死刑犯的痛苦，反而加重了他們臨死前的痛苦程度。美國曆史上就有不少案例。
Joseph Rudolph Wood (via AP)
2014年，亞利桑那州州立監獄對死刑犯Joseph Wood執行注射死刑的過程持續了近2個小時，過程十分痛苦。這一事件還引起了美國注射死刑反對者的抗議。
(Via ABC News)
(Via The Guardian)
By the time Wood died, after nearly two hours, he had been injected with 750mg each of midazolam and hydromorphone: 15 times the amounts called for in the state’s execution protocol.從開始行刑到Wood死去，經歷了將近兩個小時。他被分別注射了750毫克的咪達唑侖和氫嗎啡酮，是該州死刑執行協議規定計量的15倍。Wood’s death, on 23 July, was the third highly problematic execution in the US this year, following those of Dennis McGuire in Ohio in January and Clayton Lockett in Oklahoma in April, which were also drawn-out and led to accusations that the inmates may have endured a level of distress prohibited by the US constitution’s ban on “cruel and unusual punishment”.2014年7月23日Wood的死，是當年美國第三大死刑執行事故。此前的兩起事故是1月俄亥俄州對Dennis McGuire，和4月俄克拉何馬州對Clayton Lockett執行的死刑過程都是超時的，引發了民眾的指責，囚犯可能已經忍受了美國憲法所禁止的一定程度的痛苦，美國憲法禁止“殘忍和不尋常的懲罰”。▲Arizona inmate Joseph Wood was injected 15 times with execution drugs (via The Guardian)
不過，美國最高法院裁定，Bucklew無權得到“無痛死刑”。
But the Supreme Court's conservative justices said on Monday they considered the legal effort to be a stalling tactic.但是當地時間週一，最高法院保守派大法官們說，他們認為Bucklew的說辭只是一種拖延戰術。They said it was up to the prisoner to prove that another method of execution would "reduce a substantial risk of severe pain", but he had not done so.他們說，一切都取決於罪犯是否可以證明另外一種行刑方式可以“減輕潛在的劇痛的風險”，但他並沒有那麼做。▲US Supreme Court rules inmate has 'no right to painless death' (via BBC)
大法官們在裁決書中表示，美國憲法並沒有擔保死刑犯的死刑過程一定是無痛的。
US Supreme Court: (Front L-R) Stephen Breyer, Clarence Thomas, Chief Justice John Roberts, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Samuel Alito, Jr; (Back L-R) Neil Gorsuch, Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan and Brett Kavanaugh (via Getty Images)
"The eighth amendment [to the US constitution] forbids 'cruel and unusual' methods of capital punishment but does not guarantee a prisoner a painless death," wrote Justice Gorsuch, who was appointed by President Donald Trump in 2017.美國總統特朗普2017年任命的Neil Gorsuch大法官在裁決書中寫道，“美國憲法第八修正案禁止‘殘忍和非尋常’的死刑執行方式，但並沒有擔保死刑犯的死刑過程一定是無痛的。”▲US Supreme Court rules inmate has 'no right to painless death' (via BBC)
不過，自由派大法官們認為，根據Bucklew的情況，應當允許使用氮氣對他執行死刑，這種方式在美國三個州都是允許的。
"There are higher values than ensuring that executions run on time," wrote Justice Sonia Sotomayor in a separate opinion, adding that secrecy in the death penalty process has recently yielded different results in two similar cases.Sonia Sotomayor大法官在一份單獨的意見書中寫道：“（允許使用氮氣執行死刑）比按時行刑有著更重要的價值。”她補充說，死刑的私密性問題在兩樁類似的案件中產生了不同的結果。▲US Supreme Court rules inmate has 'no right to painless death' (via BBC)
Sotomayor大法官所指的這兩個案件是，阿拉巴馬州的一名穆斯林男子被禁止在他死刑過程中由伊瑪目為他禱告，而在另一個類似的案件中，一個佛教徒在他的死刑過程中，申請他的精神導師能夠在場，而被法院裁定暫停對他執行。
而Gorsuch大法官提到這兩個案件時表示，阿拉巴馬州的那名名叫Dominique Ray的犯人在行刑前有著充裕的時間提出申請，但Ray卻選擇在他刑期到來前15天才提出申請。
你覺得罪犯的要求合理嗎？歡迎留言分享你的觀點！整合：Du Qiongfang
整合：BBC, The Guardian, britannica.com
圖/題圖：Missouri Department of Corrections, Getty Images, AP, 網絡
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