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The Guardian - US
The Guardian - US
World
Ed Pilkington

Prison officers traumatized by rate of executions in US death penalty states

An arm restraint on the gurney in the execution chamber
An arm restraint on the gurney in the execution chamber of the Oklahoma state penitentiary in 2014. Photograph: Sue Ogrocki/AP

The relentless pursuit of “non-stop executions” by a rump of US death penalty states is exposing prison staff to extreme levels of psychological and physical stress, according to traumatized corrections officers who are appealing for help.

Though capital punishment is generally on the wane in America, with only five states carrying out executions last year, those states that remain active are showing a renewed determination. In some states, the pace of judicial killings is now so intense that prison guards are kept in an almost permanent state of readiness, with mock executions staged on a rolling basis.

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