[1] Physicians and ethicists also criticize the idea because a prisoner is not able to consent to the procedure in a free and non-coercive environment,[2] especially if they are given inducements to participate.
In Estelle v. Gamble, decided in 1976, the United States Supreme Court[5] ruled that withholding health care from prisoners constitutes "cruel and unusual punishment".
[7][8] If a prisoner qualifies, a state may allow compassionate early release to avoid the high costs associated with organ transplants.
[13] Questions regarding the benefits, practicality, morality and ethics of allowing death row inmates to donate their organs postmortem have garnered attention following two highly publicized events: an editorial by condemned prisoner Christian Longo published in The New York Times advocating for the right of fellow death row inmates to donate their organs, and the request by death row inmate Gregory Scott Johnson to have his execution stayed until he could donate a portion of his hepatitis-infected liver to his debilitated sister.
However, the quality and amount of organs that death row inmates can potentially contribute is debated, but would definitely not remove more than a small percentage of people on transplant waiting lists.
[13] The same reasons that make the general prison population less suitable to be organ donors—poor health and increased chance of infectious disease—also apply to death row inmates.
[13] However, due to the preplanned nature of executions and lengthy time periods before they are carried out death row inmates have a greater potential to be screened thoroughly beforehand.
This means that after lethal injection, the medical examiner waits 10–15 minutes to test for sign of cardiac activity before pronouncing them dead.
Indirect coercion, and mental stress can possibly impair the ability of a death row inmate to make a fully informed decision.
[13] Becoming an organ donor may influence the appeals process, where sympathy or the chance of another individual benefiting from the inmate's death may come into consideration.