The top med­ical offi­cer for the Department of Corrections in the state of Washington has resigned in order to avoid any par­tic­i­pa­tion in the state’s exe­cu­tion process. As the doc­tor respon­si­ble for prepar­ing oth­ers to car­ry out lethal injec­tions, Dr. Marc Stern con­clud­ed that his eth­i­cal oblig­a­tions as a physi­cian required that he recuse him­self from such actions and that resign­ing was the only way to ful­ly remove him­self from this process. Dr. Stern, who super­vised 700 employ­ees around the state, said that the American Medical Association and the Society of Correctional Physicians oppose physi­cian involve­ment in exe­cu­tions, ​“and they say physi­cians should not super­vise some­body who is involved in executions.”

Washington had sched­uled the exe­cu­tion of Darold Stenson in December 2008, but the exe­cu­tion was stayed. The state last car­ried out an exe­cu­tion in 2001.

(A. Wilson, ​“Washington prison doc­tor quits over death penal­ty,” The Olympian/​Seattle Times, Dec. 25, 2008). Executions resumed in the U.S. after the Supreme Court upheld the lethal injec­tion process used in Kentucky in Baze v. Rees in April 2008. Executions remain on hold in some states like California, North Carolina and Maryland, which have not resolved the lethal injec­tion issue. See Lethal Injection.

Citation Guide