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Oregon Death Row Inmate wants To Donate His Organs

Your opinion?

  • Total voters
    44
Voted yes to donation and yes to accept an organ.

Judge not......esp when it comes to necessity.
 
TurtleDude said:
hanging is the best possible solution then since the guillotine is not legal in the USA

electrocution, poison gas (brutally painful) firing squad and lethal injection are all ruinous of organs. Hanging not at all
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That's not true. Now that I've thought about it, the drugs they use to execute people aren't poison. I believe they use an over-dose of anesthetic or something else to paralyze breathing. I don't think these drugs are ruinous to organs. If they were, it would be ridiculous to even discuss the possibility. And people have been moving to allow prisoners to donate their organs for years.
 
joko104 said:
Agreed, but it has to do maybe with how to execute him. You can't execute someone by poisoning them (the needle) and maybe still use the organs.
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I considered that but since it wasnt mentioned in what I read....I dropped it.
 
MaggieD said:
That's not true. Now that I've thought about it, the drugs they use to execute people aren't poison. I believe they use an over-dose of anesthetic or something else to paralyze breathing. I don't think these drugs are ruinous to organs. If they were, it would be ridiculous to even discuss the possibility. And people have been moving to allow prisoners to donate their organs for years.
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I will defer to you on that claim. I KNOW electrocution and firing squads and gas chambers ruin the organs. given all the different drug cocktails used to lethal injections, I don't know
 
MaggieD said:
That's not true. Now that I've thought about it, the drugs they use to execute people aren't poison. I believe they use an over-dose of anesthetic or something else to paralyze breathing. I don't think these drugs are ruinous to organs. If they were, it would be ridiculous to even discuss the possibility. And people have been moving to allow prisoners to donate their organs for years.
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I think they first give them tranquillizer type drugs as a act or mercy considering the emotional trauma of knowing they're being killed is likely to have. Then they give them drugs that stop the heart from beating.
 
Smeagol said:
They can harvest the organs while under anesthesia then after the surgery, they can carry out the execution before he wakes up. Gosh, that sounds morbid! :shock:

Another concern would be exposing the recipient to communicable infections like hepatitis and HIV. Former prison inmates cannot donate blood I think due to the prevalence of prison rape. If they can be sure the organs are free from disease, I think its a great idea for the condemned to leave this world having done something good for humanity.
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Once they've harvested the heart, lungs, kidneys, and liver, execution would be redundant.
 
MaggieD said:
I think it's a wonderful idea and can't imagine why there'd be any resistance to it at all. In fact, I can't imagine why it isn't available to them.

The organ donation system is so screwy, in my opinion. The only person who doesn't make a tidy piece of change is the organ donor. Everybody else? The doctors involved, the nursing staff, the hospitals, the organ donation bureau, etc.? Cha-Ching!!
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Could it be that the State wants to avoid the appearance that the death sentence was chosen in order to increase the available supply of organs?
 
Smeagol said:
They can harvest the organs while under anesthesia then after the surgery, they can carry out the execution before he wakes up. Gosh, that sounds morbid! :shock:

Another concern would be exposing the recipient to communicable infections like hepatitis and HIV. Former prison inmates cannot donate blood I think due to the prevalence of prison rape. If they can be sure the organs are free from disease, I think its a great idea for the condemned to leave this world having done something good for humanity.
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That would be a concern, yes.


Ray410 said:
Man, it sounds like that guy is trying to escape!
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One piece at a time, to be reassembled at a later date.
 
Dezaad said:
Could it be that the State wants to avoid the appearance that the death sentence was chosen in order to increase the available supply of organs?
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That's a good reason to NEVER make it mandatory or provide benefits/perks to any inmate wanting to donate. It's not a good reason to stop them from volunteering.
 
The biggest issue here would be trying to find physicians who would be prepared to engage in activities such as this. You would need to find physicians, anaesthetists and nursing staff to assist in performing these procedures. Good luck with that. Remember, they are not executioners, they dedicate their life to savings lives, not taking them. As they should.
 
Peter King said:
Yes, they should be allowed but only to either family or people who know that they are receiving organs from an executed murderer.
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You've just reminded me of the "All in the Family" episode during which "Archie Bunker" received a transfusion from a black donor.
 
Absolutely, yes he should be able to donate.
 
BTW: I don't like the idea of requiring organ donations in this case. I fear the need for organ donors could potentially drive death sentencing in cases where more suspects would have been acquitted and those found guilty paying the ultimate price where otherwise some might have been given lesser sentences.
 
Smeagol said:
BTW: I don't like the idea of requiring organ donations in this case. I fear the need for organ donors could potentially drive death sentencing in cases where more suspects would have been acquitted and those found guilty paying the ultimate price where otherwise some might have been given lesser sentences.
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Not if its the inmates decision at any time after sentencing.
 
Smeagol said:
BTW: I don't like the idea of requiring organ donations in this case. I fear the need for organ donors could potentially drive death sentencing in cases where more suspects would have been acquitted and those found guilty paying the ultimate price where otherwise some might have been given lesser sentences.
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Agreed. It should never be required in any way.
 
pbrauer said:
1. Should death row inmates be allowed to donate organs?

2. Would you accept a donation from a death row inmate?
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If there's nothing wrong with the organs there's absolutely no reason why the answer should be no here.
 
pbrauer said:
Two questions: (poll is multiple choice)

1. Should death row inmates be allowed to donate organs?

2. Would you accept a donation from a death row inmate?

Here is the story:

NEWBERG, Ore. (AP) – Oregon death row inmate Christian Longo wants to donate a kidney to a Newberg man so desperate he’s been standing on a corner with a sign asking for an organ.

Longo says he and other inmates would be interested in donating organs if they were allowed.

In 2003, Longo was sentenced to death for killing his wife and three children on the Oregon coast. He has become an advocate for inmate organ donation and wanted to donate his organs after his execution. Gov. John Kitzhaber’s moratorium on executions in 2011 halted that idea.
Death row inmate wants to donate organs | KOIN.com
​
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An interesting subject and I chose both yes options. That would be limited, however, if there comes a time when doctors figure out a way to transplant brains.

I think it's kind of noble, in a way, and certainly against all we think about cold-hearted, inhumane, killers that some would consider giving of themselves to save a life when what they've done in the past was take a life.

It would raise questions, however, about how a death row inmate would be killed in order to secure organ harvesting after the fact - I'm not a doctor and don't know how this would be done. There's also the question of the families of victims wanting closure and getting it through seeing the person who murdered their loved one put to death - would be interesting to see how they feel about that person "living on" in this form. People who have loved one's organs donated after they pass often say that they feel the death had meaning and that their loved one lived on and they often become friendly with the person(s) who received the organs.
 
I don't see a problem with it.

Although, this is before the executed, afterwards, I'm not for sure what affect the drugs used in lethal injection would have. But since it's Oregon and he will die of natural causes years before someone actually thinks to execute him, go for it.
 
MoSurveyor said:
That's a good reason to NEVER make it mandatory or provide benefits/perks to any inmate wanting to donate. It's not a good reason to stop them from volunteering.
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Regardless as to whether it is voluntary, wouldn't the death sentence increase the likelihood of the availability of donated organs? It seems to me that an argument could be made that the only good that should ever come from the death of a criminal is the actual death of that criminal. Beyond that, it causes the issue to become clouded by other concerns.
 
My only concern is are the organs tainted from execution? If yes then no, if no then do it!
 
Yes they should be allowed to donate. I would even go so far as saying that if they're willing to donate the method of execution should be based on whatever is least likely to cause damage to the organs being donated.

Yes I would absolutely accept an organ from a death row inmate if I needed a transplant.
 
Dezaad said:
Regardless as to whether it is voluntary, wouldn't the death sentence increase the likelihood of the availability of donated organs? It seems to me that an argument could be made that the only good that should ever come from the death of a criminal is the actual death of that criminal. Beyond that, it causes the issue to become clouded by other concerns.
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In some theoretical way I suppose so, but considering the number of inmates put to death compared to the number of people who donate organs I'd say that's only an abstract. If the system starts being abused I'd think that would tend to lower the chance of donation. Criminals who feel wronged aren't as likely to volunteer.
 
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CalGun said:
People all to often refuse to look at unintended consequences. I mean besides Sarah Palin who knew there would be a govt issued death panel?
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There isn't one!
 
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