Gov. John Kasich on Wednesday announced he has postponed Ronald Phillips’ execution date until next summer in order to investigate whether the convicted killer’s organs can be donated to family members.
The governor’s decision came one day before the 40-year-old Summit County man was scheduled to be put to death under a newly approved lethal-injection drug cocktail.
Phillips, sentenced to death in 1993 for raping and killing the 3-year-old daughter of his girlfriend, sought the delay in order to see whether he would be a viable organ donor to his mother, who has kidney disease, and his sister, who has a heart condition, according to the Associated Press.
Phillips is also willing to donate organs to other people if he couldn’t help his relatives, his attorney, Lisa Lagos, told the AP. Lagos said the request wasn’t a delaying tactic but an attempt by Phillips to make a final gesture for good.
The Department of Rehabilitation and Correction had denied Phillips’ request earlier this week, citing logistics and security concerns, according to the AP.
The DRC isn’t aware of any other time that an Ohio death-row inmate has made an organ donation, according to spokeswoman JoEllen Smith. However, Smith noted that it has happened in other states such as California.
In a statement, Kasich said he realized the situation “is a bit of uncharted territory” for Ohio.
“But if another life can be saved by his willingness to donate his organs and tissues, then we should allow for that to happen,” he said.
Under DRC policy, state prison officials will conduct the initial compatibility tests.
If a transplant of any non-vital organs is feasible, Phillips would undergo an operation at Ohio State University Medical Center before returning to death row, the governor’s office said in a release. His execution has been rescheduled for July 2, 2014 at Southern Ohio Correctional Facility in Lucasville.
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