Too Fat for the Death Penalty

Forty-one-year-old Richard Cooey weighs in at 267 pounds, putting him way beyond the obesity marker for his height of five feet and seven inches. Because of this, his lawyers claim, he cannot be properly executed.

Cooey's attorneys are arguing that Cooey's weight will prevent the executioners from easily finding his veins,and the anesthetic drugs from working properly. In addition, he is also taking a drug known as Topamax. Dr. Mark Heath argues that this drug could potentially interfere with the anesthetics taking affect.

If the anesthetics do not fully take effect, Cooey's execution would be extremely painful, which according to his defense is cruel and unusual punishment. "All of the experts agree if the first drug doesn't work, the execution is going to be excruciating," said Cooey's public defender Kelly Culshaw Schneider.

Cooey was placed on death row in 1986 after committing the heinous crime of raping and murdering two young females, Dawn McCreery and Wendy Offredo. As of now, his execution is scheduled for October 14, 2008. Cooey's lawsuit may sound unusual, but it's not the only one of its kind. In 2006, Jeffrey Lundgren made a similar case. However, federal appeal court judges dismissed his claim and he was executed.