Executing The Terminally Ill

Oklahoma is scheduled to put to death a killer that has terminal cancer and a diagnosis of 6 months to live.

I've stated my objections to the death penalty and would welcome commutation of this man's sentence. But again, death penalty opponents are grasping for straws here. They want a ruling of "cruel and unusual punishment" because the man is terminally ill. I don't think so! I suppose this could be viewed as an incremental step forward. We've had rulings saying it is illegal to put to death minors and those with diminished mental capacity.

Now they are seemingly branching out to say that in addition to diminished mental capacity (minors not having a fully developed moral code) physical illness and frailty should be a consideration. This is a completely different line of argument and one I find invalid. Criminal punishment is based on the ability of perpetrator to understand he did wrong and willingly did so (not at "gun point"). This may be a slippery slope argument but it seems to me that if we say that a person does not have to serve one kind of sentence because of his physical fraility it brings other types of sentences into question.

And, from a PR stand point, I don't think this one is going to do much good. People will have some sympathy when a child* or mentally retarded person is put to death. They aren't going to have sympathy for an adult who is going to die of natural causes anyway.

* I suspect few murderers that commited their crime as a child have been put to death when they were still minors.