The notion that any form of the death penalty must be considered "cruel and unusual punishment" has received a boost from the execution of 37-year-old Christopher Newton in the American state of Ohio. The 265-pound man had been condemned to death for murdering a prison cell mate in 2001. He insisted that he wanted to die and made no attempt to appeal his sentence.

His execution took two hours -- so long that he was given a bathroom break during the process. The execution team stuck him at least 10 times with needles to insert the shunts for a lethal injection. He laughed and chatted with the prison staff throughout the process.