Family of Ohio killer plans lawsuit over execution
LUCASVILLE, Ohio (AP) — An attorney for the family of a killer whose Ohio execution by lethal injection was marked by several minutes of unprecedented gasping and unusual sounds plans to sue the state over what happened.
Dayton defense lawyer Jon Paul Rion says Dennis McGuire's family is deeply disturbed by his execution and believes it violated his constitutional rights.
Rion is a member of a state Supreme Court panel examining possible changes to Ohio's death penalty law. He said Thursday all citizens have a right to expect they won't be punished in a cruel and unusual fashion.
McGuire was executed Thursday for raping and killing a pregnant woman in 1989. He took nearly 25 minutes to die, an unusually long time based on prior executions.
