Scott had said goodbye to his family and was waiting in a holding cell 35 feet away from the death chamber when news of his reprieve arrived. The last-minute decision borders on cruel and unusual and places undue stress on the prisoner and his family. The district court is required by 5 p.m. today to complete its review of Scott's case. In a Feb. 7 editorial, The Post said it does not support capital punishment, but if the United States insists on maintaining the practice, the appeals system needs to improve. Whether the delay is a week or five days, prisoners should have time to mentally prepare for death.
Executions are costly.
The most recent Ohio execution was that of Wilford Berry, put to death in February 1999. Included in that sum was prison labor for the execution night, a satellite truck to officially announce the execution and lethal drugs. If the state, during the course of 17 years, cannot determine whether a convict is competent enough to die, perhaps it is only revealing its own inadequacies and the inadequacies of a system that determines life and death.