Question 1

Which of the following states was the first to authorize execution by lethal injection?

Accepted Answer

Oklahoma was the first state to authorize execution by lethal injection in 1977, setting a precedent that many other states would follow in adopting this method as a more humane alternative to previous execution methods.

Question 2

Where and when was the first execution by lethal injection?

Accepted Answer

The first execution by lethal injection took place in Texas on December 7, 1982. Although other states had authorized the use of lethal injection earlier, Texas was the first state to carry out an execution by this method.

Question 3

Which of the following methods of execution currently is provided by the most jurisdictions?

Accepted Answer

Lethal injection is currently the most commonly used method of execution in jurisdictions that still practice capital punishment.

Question 4

Which of the following methods of execution has been used to execute the largest number of offenders under post-Furman statutes?

Accepted Answer

Lethal injection has been the primary method of execution used in the United States since the reintroduction of the death penalty in 1976. It has been used to execute the largest number of offenders under post-Furman statutes.

Question 5

Death penalty "enhancements," along with burning the body, were especially terrifying to most colonial Americans and, thus, presumably effective deterrents to crime, because, according to Christian theology, if the integrity of a person's corpse has been violated and the corpse has not been properly buried, that person will be denied resurrection at the final judgment.

Accepted Answer

This statement is true based on Christian theology beliefs. The fear of being denied resurrection at the final judgment would have been a strong deterrent to many colonial Americans.

Question 6

The first reference to a government's proscription of "cruel and unusual punishments" is the Eighth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.

Accepted Answer

The concept of prohibiting "cruel and unusual punishments" predates the Eighth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution and can be traced back to the English Bill of Rights in 1689.

Question 7

For approximately 120 years after the adoption of the Bill of Rights, the Supreme Court employed a fixed or historical meaning for the concept of "cruel and unusual punishment."

Accepted Answer

Prior to the 1950s and 1960s, the Supreme Court used a fixed or historical interpretation of "cruel and unusual punishment" as it appears in the Eighth Amendment. However, since then, the Court has also considered evolving standards of decency in society when determining what constitutes cruel and unusual punishment.

Question 8

The Supreme Court has never declared an execution method cruel and unusual punishment.

Accepted Answer

The U.S. Supreme Court has not categorically declared any specific method of execution as cruel and unusual punishment under the Eighth Amendment, though it has evaluated the constitutionality of certain methods.

Question 9

With the long drop, most of the botched hangings resulted in slow and painful strangulation.

Accepted Answer

The long drop method was designed to cause a quick death by breaking the neck, reducing the likelihood of slow strangulation.

Question 10

As late as the 1960s, at the state prison in Walla Walla, Washington, a hanging resulted in the inmate's head nearly being torn off and witnesses to the execution being spattered with blood.

Accepted Answer

This statement is true. The botched hanging occurred in 1961 at the Washington State Penitentiary in Walla Walla.

Question 11

During the twentieth century, more people have been executed by electrocution than any other method.

Accepted Answer

According to the Death Penalty Information Center, from the 1890s until 2021, more than 4,000 people have been executed by electrocution in the United States, making it the second most used method after lethal injection.

Question 12

The electric chair is an American invention.

Accepted Answer

The electric chair was invented in the United States in the late 19th century as a more humane method of execution than hanging.

Question 13

The electric chair is an unintended product of a corporate battle between the Westinghouse and Edison companies.

Accepted Answer

The electric chair was adopted as a method of execution in the United States during the late 19th century as a result of a competition between the rival companies Westinghouse and Edison, known as the "War of Currents." Edison backed the use of direct current (DC) for electric power distribution, while Westinghouse favored alternating current (AC). To discredit AC, Edison and his supporters promoted the idea that it was more deadly than DC, and thus created the electric chair as a means of demonstrating AC's supposed danger. Westinghouse, however, opposed the use of the electric chair and even offered to supply electricity to the state of New York without charge if they used a different method of execution.

Question 14

A principal reason why the state legislature that first adopted electrocution chose it as a method of execution instead of lethal injection was that doctors feared that people would associate death with the hypodermic needle and the practice of medicine.

Accepted Answer

This is stated in the passage as "doctors and other medical professionals expressed concern that if the public saw medicine as a means of killing, it could undermine public trust in the field of medicine."

Question 15

Eyewitnesses reported that the first person executed by electrocution died "instantaneously."

Accepted Answer

The first person executed by electrocution, William Kemmler in 1890, did not die instantaneously. The initial application of electricity failed to kill him, and a second, more powerful charge was needed to cause death, indicating a prolonged and problematic execution process.

Question 16

Following the first execution by electrocution, experts on electricity, such as Thomas Edison and Nikola Tesla, publicly debated whether electrocution was so horrible that it should never have been invented.

Accepted Answer

This statement is true. After the first execution by electrocution in 1890, there was a public debate about the use of electricity for capital punishment, and both Thomas Edison and Nikola Tesla expressed their opinions on the matter. Edison was a proponent of electrocution, while Tesla argued against it.

Question 17

The Supreme Court has held that a second electrocution, conducted after first has failed to kill defendant, is in violation of 8th Amendment cruel and unusual punishment clause.

Accepted Answer

The Supreme Court has not specifically ruled that a second electrocution after a failed first attempt violates the Eighth Amendment's prohibition on cruel and unusual punishment. Cases involving multiple attempts at execution have been discussed in lower courts, but the Supreme Court has not directly addressed this scenario in terms of a violation of the Eighth Amendment.

Question 18

Some states provide for more than one method of execution.

Accepted Answer

Some states allow for more than one method of execution, such as lethal injection, electrocution, gas chamber, hanging, or firing squad.

Question 19

Medical doctors, and especially anesthesiologists, are frequently opposed to lethal injection as an execution method because, among other things, no assurances can be given that the barbiturates will not wear off before death occurs, causing the condemned inmate to wake up and slowly suffocate to death.

Accepted Answer

Many medical professionals, including anesthesiologists, have publicly spoken out against lethal injection as an execution method due to concerns over its effectiveness and potential for causing unnecessary pain and suffering. One of the main concerns is the possibility that the barbiturates used to induce unconsciousness may wear off before death occurs, leaving the inmate awake and aware of their surroundings while being paralyzed and unable to move or communicate. This can lead to a slow and agonizing death by suffocation, which is considered by many to be cruel and inhumane. As a result, many medical professionals have refused to participate in executions or provide drugs for use in lethal injections, citing ethical and moral objections to the practice.

Question 20

The laws in all death penalty states stipulate that the medical techniques used in lethal injection executions are not medical techniques, and the medical personnel who participate in them are not medical personnel for the purpose of executing prison inmates.

Accepted Answer

The laws in death penalty states do indeed state that the medical techniques used in lethal injections are not considered medical techniques and the medical personnel involved are not considered medical personnel for the purpose of executing inmates. This is to avoid any ethical violations in which medical professionals would be participating in executions, which goes against medical ethics.

Quiz 6: Cruel and Unusual Punishment, Death Row, and Methods of Execution