The New York Times, April 19, 2011 by Ty Alper
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/04/20/opinion/lweb20lethal.html
Paralyzing prisoners before injecting them with the potassium chloride that kills them serves one purpose: to make the executions appear peaceful and humane. Are they in fact? It’s almost impossible to know. That’s why the veterinary community rejects the practice of paralyzing animals during euthanasia. Our standards for human executions are not as high.