Oregon death row inmate Gary Haugen may have formally accepted his death sentence, but he’s not headed towards the execution room anytime soon. Haugen, who accepted the death penalty “in protest of the arbitrary and capricious and vindictive nature of Oregon’s death penalty scheme”, called Oregon’s Gov. John Kitzhaber a “paper cowboy” for issuing Haugen a reprieve this week. Ironically, Haugen and Kitzhaber seem to actually share opinions on Oregon’s death penalty system, which Kitzhaber has called “a perversion of justice”.
The problem is that Haugen – a convicted killer – is determined to die in protest of the system, while Kitzhaber seems equally determined to keep him alive for the same reason. Haugen, who has now received two stays of execution, has said of the rulings “Man, this is definitely cruel and unusual punishment. You don’t bring a guy to the table twice and then just stop it. Cruel and unusual punishment is a violation of the 8th Amendment of the US Constitution.
Haugen isn’t only having problems with his governor; his attorneys have been acting contrary to his wishes as well. Haugen’s attorney’s have repeatedly argued against the death penalty, claiming their client suffers from Fetal Alcohol Syndrome, a claim Haugen dismissed in the amusing exchanged captured 56 seconds into the video below.
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