Execution van
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The execution van, also called a mobile execution unit, was developed by the government of the People's Republic of China (PRC)[citation needed]. The prisoner is strapped to a stretcher and executed inside the van.[citation needed] The van allows death sentences to be carried out without moving the prisoner to an execution ground. The vans require four people to assist with the injection and are mobile.[citation needed]
People's Republic of China[edit]
In China, lethal injections were legalized in 1997[1]. Lethal injections are now the most prominent form of capital punishment in China and, in some provinces, are the only legal form of capital punishment.[2] Zhao Shijie, president of the Yunnan Provincial High Court, said "The use of lethal injection shows that China's death penalty system is becoming more civilized and humane". [3]
Because of demand and expensive of facilities, the state deploys special police buses designed to administer some lethal injections.[4] These officials[who?] state that the vans are cost-effective by allowing communities without the money to build dedicated death rows to kill prisoners without the costs associated with sending prisoners away for death.[5]
Notable executions[edit]
On December 22, 2003, organized crime leader Liu Yong was executed in an execution van in a controversial ruling. Liu was convicted of 32 charges and sentenced to death in 2000, but was granted a reprieve after appealing the case on the grounds that his confession was forced. Liu had been given a retrial by the Supreme Court on December 17. It was the first time the Supreme Court had bypassed China's two-trial system in which two trials are permitted and the verdict of the second trial may be appealed by either side.[6][7]
See also[edit]
- Capital punishment
- Capital punishment in the People's Republic of China
- Gas van
- Police bus
- Prison bus
References[edit]
- ^ "China to swap bullets for lethal injections". Reuters.
- ^ Congressional-Executive Commission on China, 2010 Annual Report Archived 5 December 2010 at the Wayback Machine, 10 October 2010, p. 98.
- ^ "Undermining Global Security: the European Union's arms exports". Amnesty International. 2004. p. 76.
- ^ Fisher, Max. "Yes, China still harvests organs from executed prisoners". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved 2020-10-29.
- ^ Killing Vans Make Process Easier For China's Authorities, by The Irish Times
- ^ "Mafia kingpin dies in execution van". Taipei Times. 2003-12-23.
- ^ Belkin, Ira (Fall 2000). "China's Criminal Justice System: A Work in Progress" (PDF). Washington Journal of Modern China. 6 (2). Archived (PDF) from the original on 19 October 2011. Retrieved 6 March 2024.