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The Fitting End Of A Child Killer

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The Tampa Tribune

Published: July 3, 2008

Florida's revised method of executing condemned inmates was put to its first test Tuesday night in Starke, and it appeared to work perfectly in ending the life of a vicious child killer.
Mark Dean Schwab's execution should put to rest the debate about whether lethal injection is cruel and unusual punishment, as some death penalty opponents argue.

Without question, Schwab deserved to die for kidnapping, raping and killing an 11-year-old Cocoa boy he stalked in 1991 - not long after being released early from prison, where he had been serving time for raping another boy at knifepoint.

It took 16 years for Schwab to pay the ultimate price for the murder of Junny Rio-Martinez, an outrageous amount of time. But the focus was not on the delay but how Schwab's sentence would be carried out.

His was the first execution since the botched 2006 death of Angel Diaz, who witnesses said appeared in pain after the injection went through his vein and chemicals spilled onto his flesh, burning him. It took 34 minutes for him to die.

As a result, then-Gov. Jeb Bush halted executions and formed a committee to study the procedures. Obviously, the moratorium, which lasted 18 months, was justified.

The state Department of Corrections ended up making 37 changes to the process as recommended by the group. One of the most sensible - and important - is requiring a corrections official to make sure an inmate is unconscious after receiving a dose of sodium pentothal. And a video camera enabled medical staff to better monitor the execution in case something went wrong, another logical move.

When Schwab didn't respond to touches and the saying of his name, the OK was given to administer two other chemicals to complete his sentence. The procedure and pronouncement of death took just under 15 minutes. "It was humane and dignified," DOC spokeswoman Gretl Plessinger said.

Some people may argue that Schwab's death was too humane and dignified considering what he did to Junny, who loved flying kites, and that's understandable. But the state has an obligation to apply the death penalty in a fashion that doesn't cause unnecessary pain and anguish.

Otherwise, the U.S. Supreme Court, which upheld lethal injection in April, could find it unconstitutional.

If the state continues to carry out death sentences as it did Tuesday night, justice will be served.

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