"If someone is sentenced to die by lethal injection, why bother sterilizing the needle?"?

Protocol. But there is no good reason since once your are dead the threat of infection is zero.

Regardless if the person is going to die due to lethal injection or not they still have to sterilize the needle because the family can sue. You also can not get injected if the person is sick or has some kind of fungi, So pretty much if there is any thing medically wrong with an inmate that is getting lethal injection the state is not allowed to give the injection. Although they are going to die anyway the state has to protect all inmates. They can be sued for wrongful death. A dirty needle could still cause bacteria to settle in the body even after death. Thus the family could say wrongful death due to bacteria caused by the needle. Go figure but it happens.

Sterilization is a part of the process of giving an injection, anyone giving an injection has been trained to use a clean needle and to disinfect the area.

All needles in this country are mandated by law to be made sterile. If they are used for lethal injection or just injection of a vaccine or whatever, they are made sterile.

It falls under that "cruel & unusual punishment" clause... yes, they're killing you - but they must do it in a humane way.

They're not allowed to "torture" a person prior to their death -- nor are they allowed to kill them except in the ways which are allowed by the state. (which is VERY specific about how prisoners are executed)

The prisoner has rights - right up through the moment of their death... and it would be a violation of those rights to not sterilize the needle they're being injected with.

It's respectful I guess. Physically, no reason, but if I die that way, I would rather a nice sterilized needle than, say, one dropped in a toilet or something.

Good point.

I prefer executions by dropping the convicted out of a plane at 40,000 feet - without a parachute -over the middle of the ocean. It gives them some time to think about what they did before thye get splattered into tiny pieces of fish food.

That's a really good question!

But what if they inserted the needle and someone pardons them, you don't want them to get Hepititus or something...?

Or maybe it's for the people who want everything to be humane...it keeps things calm? I don't know...

it'd be kinda rude to the prisoner not to sterilize it. its like telling him that no one cares your dying. it must be out of respect since he's gonna die you might as well cater to that one thing lol

but i dont beleive the death penalty should be given anymore

there should be a prison meant only for death penalty people to spend the rest of their lives there

They come packaged and sterile. Maybe keep using the same needle over and over........