Sen. James Inhofe (R-OK) doesn’t think there should be changes to the death penalty in light of the botched execution of Clayton Lockett earlier in the week.
Inhofe told Roll Call that the focus should stay on the crimes Lockett committed.
“Now this happened, I don’t remember the guy’s name, but I do know that he raped and then with a sawed-off shotgun shot the girl and buried her alive,” Inhofe said Wednesday, referring to Lockett’s crimes. “And the people who’re concerned about how much he must have suffered, they ought to think about how much she suffered, and I don’t think that should change anything.”
Inhofe added that “obviously, they need to find out what went wrong, and I have information that they’ve already done that.”
A day earlier Oklahoma Gov. Mary Fallin (R) called for an independent review of how the state handles executions in light of the botched Lockett execution.
Sen. Tom Coburn (R-OK) on Thursday also said his opinion on executions hadn’t changed in light of the events surrounding the Lockett execution.
“It’s an unfortunate thing,” Coburn said on MSNBC, adding “but any time you’re doing something with a body, things can go wrong.”
