condemned man wants to donate liver

[weeone]

Condemned Man Wants To Donate Liver To His Dying Sister
May 16, 2005, 11:54 AM

(MICHIGAN CITY, Ind.) -- An attorney for an Indiana death row inmate is
asking for a reprieve so he can donate his liver to his dying sister.

Michelle Kraus represents Gregory Scott Johnson, who is scheduled to
die by lethal injection next week for the 1985 murder of his 82-year-old
neighbor, Ruby Hutslar.

Kraus tells NBC's "Today" show that the first step is to take a blood
test to determine if Johnson is a match to donate to his sister.

She says doctors could take a piece of Johnson's liver in what is known
as a "split liver" transplant. The remainder of the organ would
regenerate and, in time, Johnson would be healthy enough to be put to death.

A clemency hearing was scheduled for Monday at the state prison in
Michigan City.

[MadIndie Chick]

Not to sound awful but can't they just wait until her kicks it then give her the whole thing?
Who needs to get better to die? That is a strange statement.

[purple_octopus]

Not to sound awful but can't they just wait until her kicks it then give her the whole thing?
Who needs to get better to die? That is a strange statement.
Would the lethal injection possibly damage the internal organs to the point that he can no longer donate them?

I think they should let him do it if he and his sister are in fact compatible.

[MadIndie Chick]

Well I would think you would just take out the liver for the transplant then give him the injection when he is under for the opperation. Seems humane to me unless they need to have some big ceremony for killing him by lethal injection.

[PoisonIvy]

Prisoners have to be in good health before they can be executed. I don't know why that is either, but that's the way it works. I don't support the death penalty, so it's pretty much the same to me either way.

I think he should be allowed to donate his liver to his sister if they are a match. It may be her only chance at getting a donor. I don't think she should be made to suffer becasue her brother is on death row.

[Orville Wrong]

The remainder of the organ would regenerate and, in time, Johnson would be healthy enough to be put to death.
Isn't this kind of like washing your car before having it hauled to the junkyard? The death penalty can be lethal if you're not in peak condition.

[redmeg8]

My hometown - woah.

[Shlep]

Would the lethal injection possibly damage the internal organs to the point that he can no longer donate them?

I dunno. Seeing as how the liver is the body's toxin filter, I'm inclined to think that lethal injection would ruin it. Here's the procedure from "How Stuff Works":

The drugs are administered, in this order:

Anesthetic - Sodium thiopental, which has the trademark name Pentothal, puts the inmate into a deep sleep. This drug is a barbiturate that induces general anesthesia when administered intravenously. It can reach effective clinical concentrations in the brain within 30 seconds, according to an Amnesty International report. For surgical operations, patients are given a dose of 100 to 150 milligrams over a period of 10 to 15 seconds. For executions, as many as 5 grams (5,000 mg) of Pentothal may be administered. This in itself is a lethal dose. It's believed by some that after this anesthetic is delivered, the inmate doesn't feel anything.

Saline solution flushes the intravenous line.

Paralyzing agent - Pancuronium bromide, also known as Pavulon, is a muscle relaxant that is given in a dose that stops breathing by paralyzing the diaphragm and lungs. Conventionally, this drug takes effect in one to three minutes after being injected. In many states, this drug is given in doses of up to 100 milligrams, a much higher dose than is used in surgical operations -- usually 40 to 100 micrograms per one kilogram of body weight. Other chemicals that can be used as a paralyzing agent include tubocurarine chloride and succinylcholine chloride.

Saline solution flushes the intravenous line.

Toxic agent (not used by all states) - Potassium chloride is given at a lethal dose in order to interrupt the electrical signaling essential to heart functions. This induces cardiac arrest.

They way I see it: if they plan to put him under and kill him, why not put him under, remove his liver, *then* kill him?

Might as well afford the guy the chance to do some good before he pays for doing wrong.

[jd1]

Maybe it's a "thin end of the wedge" kinda thing. We don't really want to live in a world where people are cut up for spare parts against their will--so instead we make sure that there is NO "taint" of organ donation associated with executions? In other words if the state is putting you to death, they isolate it completely so that there is no question as to why it is being done. Criminal punishment, pure & simple.

Admittedly it is a very heavy handed approach but the law is full of systems that work this way (like the way evidence obtained illegally by the police cannot be admitted at trial).

This case is a no-brainer... If the guy is a match, the liver goes to his sister. I also think it's reasonable to just put him under, yank the thing, and then fix it so he doesn't wake up... But maybe for policy reasons they don't want to erode the standard outlined above.

--JD

[purple_octopus]

I dunno. Seeing as how the liver is the body's toxin filter, I'm inclined to think that lethal injection would ruin it. Here's the procedure from "How Stuff Works"...

Yes dear, that was my reasoning for why they couldn't do that...

[Handy Smurf]

Prisoners have to be in good health before they can be executed. I don't know why that is either, but that's the way it works. I don't support the death penalty, so it's pretty much the same to me either way.

I think he should be allowed to donate his liver to his sister if they are a match. It may be her only chance at getting a donor. I don't think she should be made to suffer becasue her brother is on death row.
I agree, as I am also opposed to it. The whole thing seems silly to me, too. Its an interesting debate for some of those hypocritical pro/lifers out there(I know they exist, many of them are in politics)

[Orville Wrong]

I don't support the death penalty, so it's pretty much the same to me either way.
Me neither.

[Louisianagrl]

Condemned Man Wants To Donate Liver To His Dying Sister
May 16, 2005, 11:54 AM

(MICHIGAN CITY, Ind.) -- An attorney for an Indiana death row inmate is
asking for a reprieve so he can donate his liver to his dying sister.

Michelle Kraus represents Gregory Scott Johnson, who is scheduled to
die by lethal injection next week for the 1985 murder of his 82-year-old
neighbor, Ruby Hutslar.

Kraus tells NBC's "Today" show that the first step is to take a blood
test to determine if Johnson is a match to donate to his sister.

She says doctors could take a piece of Johnson's liver in what is known
as a "split liver" transplant. The remainder of the organ would
regenerate and, in time, Johnson would be healthy enough to be put to death.

A clemency hearing was scheduled for Monday at the state prison in
Michigan City.

We've been running this story all morning. I don't see why his execution couldn't be delayed by a little while to do this. It's not like the man's liver is evil and gave out evil vibes that made him pummel his elderly neighbor to death. If it works and it's a match, I say more power to the guy. It ain't like he's gonna be using it once he's dead.

[DaysWithoutEnd]

My fiance works for the local blood/tissue center. She's the one who calls your family to ask about possible donation. You'd be surprised how hard it is to get donors, even if they sign a donor card.

[despondent]

Parole Board Recommends Against Clemency



By MIKE SMITH, Associated Press Writer 14 minutes ago

The Indiana Parole Board voted unanimously Friday against a death-row inmate's request that his execution be delayed so he can donate part of his liver to an ailing sister.

The board recommended that Gov. Mitch Daniels deny Gregory Scott Johnson's request for clemency or a 90-day reprieve from his execution, scheduled for early Wednesday.

Johnson, who was convicted of the 1985 murder of 82-year-old Ruby Hutslar, said he wants time to donate part of his liver to his 48-year-old sister, Debra Otis, who lives in an Anderson nursing home.

Board member Randall Gentry suggested that media attention over the transplant issue had caused some to drift from the basic facts of the case — that Johnson had "admitted to the beating and brutal stomping death of a defenseless elderly lady."

Johnson, 40, was convicted of breaking into Hutslar's Anderson home, beating and stomping on her, then setting a fire to hide his crime. The state has said he admitted to the killing but changed his story after his conviction.

During a hearing before the board Monday, Johnson denied killing Hutslar but said he was in the house with an accomplice and set the fire.

The state attorney general's office took no position on the reprieve request, but said Johnson was clearly guilty and that his death sentence should be carried out.

Johnson's attorneys argue that he should be granted clemency on several grounds. Among other things, they said his case was not fully reviewed by the federal courts because an original appeal request was filed one day late. They also say prosecutors did not turn over certain evidence to defense attorneys before trial.

Michelle Kraus, one of Johnson's attorneys, said her client's blood type matches his sister's. She said that could make his liver compatible with Otis, but more time was needed to explore medical and ethical questions about such a transplant.

"He is trying to do something good," she said. "He has struggled to find good in his life."

Julie Woodard, Hutslar's great niece, said she did not wish any harm to Johnson's sister. But if Johnson were allowed to donate the liver, she said, "He is going to be remembered more as a hero for saving his sister than for this brutal murder."

Johnson's mother, Alice Newman, said she was devastated by the board's recommendation, but added that her son recently told her he is prepared to die if clemency is denied.

"I sometimes think that he'd be better off being put to death as he is staying in a little cubicle cell the rest of his life," Newman said.

[markalot]

Can we have your liver then?

[weeone]

http://www.thelouisvillechannel.com/health/4511934/detail.html

checking news from Europe....

[jneale]

NPR did a story about this - the lethal injection could damage the liver. The sister is on a list for an entire liver - not just a piece like her brother wants to give her. Doctors stated the there shouldn't be a problem getting a liver for her from a cadaver.

They don't want to put him under to get a piece of his liver on the outside chance that something could go wrong in the surgery & they'd end up having to spend massive amounts of money to either correct the damage or keep him on life support.

I don't understand why they don't cut a deal with him - if he really wants to do it - and she really needs an entire liver - hack it out and kill him on the table. It seems like the guy is just trying to postpone the inevitable - have the surgery, recover, then get the ax.

[postfeminist]

Would the lethal injection possibly damage the internal organs to the point that he can no longer donate them?

I think they should let him do it if he and his sister are in fact compatible.

i agree with p_o...


i'm anti-death penalty, but i say this--if you're going to execute them, why not take everything you can from them first to give to those who could use the organs?

[ICONOCLAST420]

In China they shoot the condemned prisoners, then sell off the organs. Sometimes they shoot people in the head and take hearts, lungs, livers, etc. sometimes they shoot them in the heart and take the retinas. Gruesome to say the very least.

[classicgrrl]

how do you donate only 1/2 a liver? Isn't that a pretty much all or nothing situation?

I don't know that much about anatomy. Can you exist without a liver?

[postfeminist]

i believe that under optimal circumstances, the liver regenerates.

[joebob]

aha....one would think we could do that synthetically. guess not.
Our brainboy GOP leaders want to outlaw the stem cell medical research that would allow us to discover, test and practice this. Don't worry though, another nation will develop the technology and then they'll have more reasons to laugh at us.

i think the parole board could give the dude the option of donating his whole liver.

all or nothing baby all or nothing.

Kevorkian went to battle over organ donations from consenting prison inmates. This was decades ago, and the courts banned it. In my opinion, any good they can contribute to society - especially if they're willing donors - should be welcomed and applauded. In this day and age, when "rehabilitation" and "corrections" are laughable terms and the criminal detention centers are built by lowest-bid contractors, it's an industry streamlined to maximize efficiency - even profit (prison labor is sold). Why not allow (not force, coerce, bribe or trick) healthy inmates to give what they can back to society?

I don't get our laws sometimes.