Dennis McGuire
Dennis McGuire was 53 when he was put to death by lethal injection at an Ohio prison on January 16, 2014. His family said he was worried about his children and did not want to stage a show in front of his daughter, and family members wept during the execution. He died over 26 minutes after a combination of midazolam and hydromorphone, drugs never before used in the U.S., was given, a process that drew criticism and calls for a moratorium on the death penalty. His family said it amounted to torture and has sued, alleging undue cruelty. Prison records released later say he told guards his attorney had urged him to fake suffocation, but the public defender's office says an internal review did not substantiate that and that all eyewitness accounts indicate he was unconscious when he struggled to breathe.
Cause of death, as reported: Executed by the state. McGuire's family said the lethal injection amounted to torture and sued, alleging undue cruelty.
Reported by: family members; the public defender's office (family or their lawyers).
Lawsuit: His family sued over his execution, alleging it amounted to cruel treatment, and no settlement or award amount has been reported.