State says no proof condemned Ohio inmate has anesthesia allergy beyond inmate’s own word

State: No sign of Ohio inmate’s anesthesia allergy

COLUMBUS, Ohio — The medical records of a condemned Ohio inmate who says he’s allergic to anesthesia used in state executions show no evidence of such an allergy beyond his own statements, according to federal court papers filed Friday by the state attorney general.

The state said the records also show Darryl Durr has taken a painkiller used in Ohio’s backup execution process in the past without problems.

In an unusual legal maneuver, Durr is arguing that no one knows how his body will react if state officials are allowed next week to inject him with the one lethal drug they now use. But the state, quoting a medical expert, also said there is no proof that an allergic reaction would occur before Durr was already deeply unconscious from the drug.

The worst type of allergic reaction to anesthesia results in death from low blood pressure and impaired breathing, the state added.

“Such effects are irrelevant in the context of an execution because they would occur after the inmate loses consciousness and because the intent is to bring about a rapid death,” according to Mark Dershwitz, a University of Massachusetts professor and physician, told the state in an e-mail submitted as part of the state’s filing.

Durr, 46, was sentenced to die for raping and strangling a 16-year-old girl in 1988.

Durr’s attorneys argue an allergic reaction could deny him the quick and painless execution guaranteed by the Ohio Constitution.

Durr’s lawyers responded Friday that he was told about his allergy following a surgery that happened sometime before 2007. Durr then passed the information on to an anesthesiologist prepping him for a 2007 hernia operation.

“It seems unlikely that a person about to have a surgery would make up information,” Durr’s attorneys wrote in a court motion Friday.

They argued they needed time to collect more information about Durr’s medical history.

The state used two separate examinations of Durr’s medical records to make its argument.

The first is a one-page form referring to an apparent medical procedure in April 2007 that was not part of the records Durr submitted to the court.

That form indicates Durr has no allergies, and that he received hydromorphone, the painkiller prescribed for Ohio’s backup execution method.

The state also says medical records submitted by Durr show he received hydromorphone in June 2004 with no problems.

Durr submitted the records Thursday and they were filed under seal Friday by order of U.S. District Court Judge Gregory Frost to prevent the viewing of personal information.

Also Friday a federal judge refused to stop the execution based on Durr’s request for more DNA testing but referred the issue to a federal appeals court.

U.S. District Court Judge George Smith rejected Durr’s claim that the state is violating his constitutional rights by refusing to test for DNA on a necklace found on the victim that Durr says could implicate another suspect.

Experts have testified there would be no DNA on the necklace that Angel Vincent was wearing when her decomposed body was found.

Officials also couldn’t guarantee the necklace had been preserved properly as evidence, ruining the chance of obtaining any results that could be used in court.

DNA testing of other biological evidence preserved from Vincent’s body that was done last year at Durr’s request found no DNA other than Vincent’s.