A Florida death row inmate who was convicted of kidnapping and killing a woman in 2000 is asking the court to show him leniency regarding his execution, scheduled for early next month, because he is “morbidly obese.”
In an appeal filed Monday, lawyers say that 48-year-old Michael Tanzi “is morbidly obese and suffers from severe chronic sciatica” as well as other conditions, such as “hyperlipidemia, uncontrolled hypertension, and gastroesophageal reflux disease.”
Tanzi believes, according to his attorneys, that his execution by lethal injection would violate the Constitution’s Eighth Amendment, which prevents cruel and unusual punishment.
“The existing protocols for lethal injection do not contemplate the execution of someone with obesity and uncontrolled medical conditions, like Mr. Tanzi’s, that are likely to complicate the lethal injection process,” the filing read…