DEAR EDITOR:

The Associated Press reported on the upcoming bipartisan legislation to end capital punishment in Ohio. There were several reasons listed for wanting to do this, such as cost to taxpayers to keep an inmate on death row, lack of lethal injection drugs available, as well as some moral and legal questions pertaining to the death penalty. Certain crimes are so heinous the death penalty is warranted, and execution of sentence, in a timely manner, is justified.

Gov. Mike DeWine instructed lawmakers to find alternative methods to lethal injection, based on the state’s inability to obtain the needed drugs. Apparently, these so-called “lawmakers” are at a loss to suggest other methods of execution to the governor or lack the spine to do so. Since there is a problem in the supply chain for lethal injection drugs, let’s take a look at some other methods of execution.

— Beheading via guillotine: A heavy, sharpened blade, placed in two guide rails is lifted a certain distance above the convict’s neck, which is held in position by use of a stock. At the appointed time, a lever is pulled and the blade drops, cleanly removing the convict’s head. This method is quick and certain.

— Firing squad: Convict is tied standing to a pole, five shooters aim at accused heart and fire on command. This method is inexpensive and certain.

— Hanging: The convict is placed on a scaffold with a rope secured around his neck. Based on the weight of the convict, a certain number of ballast bags are used to facilitate breaking the neck, in conjunction with the distance of the drop from the scaffold. This method, when done correctly, is quite effective, and has been used for years with great success.

Why haven’t so-called “lawmakers” suggested any, if not all, of these methods of execution, to Gov. DeWine? All these suggested methods work with better certainty than lethal injections and end the lives of convicts given the death sentence with more mercy than was shown their victim(s). The appeals process for death penalty cases is overly long and drawn out already, and with the advances in DNA testing, the odds of a convict given the death penalty being executed without just cause is minimum these days. Death penalty cases should be handled in a timely manner, appeals also should be fast tracked and heard by a judge with due haste. Execution of sentence should be swiftly carried out. By the way, in Japan, a convict given the death sentence does not know the date of his or her execution. They sit in their cells, wondering if each day is the last. This country could learn from this lesson.

JIM FLORENCE

Bristolville