Death Row’s Final Dilemma: Can Murderers Give the Gift of Life?
Can a killer’s final act be one of redemption?
Christian Longo, a man who once fled authorities while facing quadruple murder charges, ultimately confessed to the unthinkable—he slaughtered his entire family. But in a shocking twist, years after his conviction, he made a desperate plea: He wanted to donate his organs after his execution.
“I am guilty,” Longo admitted in a 2011 op-ed for The New York Times, nearly eight years after his death sentence. “The enormity of what I did seeped in… followed by remorse and then a wish to make amends.”
His version of atonement? Allowing his organs to be used to save lives after his execution. But can death row inmates actually donate their organs?
A Rare Occurrence
The answer, experts say, is complicated. Organ donation by death row inmates is exceedingly rare due to ethical, logistical, and legal barriers. The U.S. Department of Prisons prohibits posthumous organ donation, and most states follow suit. However, history holds a few shocking exceptions.
The Case of Gary Gilmore: The Killer Who Inspired a Punk Anthem
In 1977, Gary Gilmore became the first person executed in the U.S. after the Supreme Court reinstated the death penalty. A violent spree killer, he demanded to die by firing squad. After his execution, doctors removed his organs, including his corneas—a detail that inspired the punk rock hit Gary Gilmore’s Eyes by The Adverts.
But did his organs actually help anyone? Some reports suggest that his kidneys were unusable, raising doubts about the success of the procedure.
The Poisoner Who Gave Back
In 1984, convicted murderer Margie Velma Barfield was put to death via lethal injection after confessing to multiple poisonings. Unlike Gilmore, her organ donation was successful—her remains were sent to a medical school, and her organs were harvested for transplantation.
Recent Attempts: The System Says No
More recently, convicted killers have pushed to donate their organs, only to be met with legal and logistical roadblocks.
In 1996, Larry Lonchar, sentenced to die in Georgia’s electric chair for a triple murder, pleaded for an alternative execution method that would preserve his organs. “My life is nothing. I’m not afraid of dying,” he said. “If I can make my life a little worthwhile, then I’d like to.” His request was denied.
Longo, who brutally murdered his wife and three children in 2001, made a similar plea, calling the destruction of his healthy organs a “waste.” But Oregon’s death penalty moratorium rendered his request meaningless.
The Harsh Reality of Prisoner Organ Donation
According to the United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS), the likelihood of death row inmates successfully donating organs is slim. For an organ to be viable, the donor must die in a controlled environment, such as a hospital, with oxygenated blood flowing to their organs. Execution methods do not allow for this.
Additionally, ethical concerns loom large. “There will always be questions about whether an offer to donate is truly voluntary or simply a tactic to delay execution,” says Robert Dunham, executive director of the Death Penalty Information Center.
Even in rare cases where prisoners attempted to donate while alive—such as Delaware inmate Steven Shelton, who successfully gave a kidney to his mother in 1995—medical and legal obstacles make these cases anomalies rather than the norm.
A Missed Opportunity or an Ethical Minefield?
With over 107,000 people in the U.S. awaiting organ transplants, some argue that denying inmates the ability to donate is a wasted opportunity. Trial lawyer Amanda Kay Seals believes allowing prisoner organ donations could provide a rare opportunity for redemption: “For inmates, it’s an opportunity to exercise agency for good in an environment where there’s very little opportunity to exercise agency at all.”
But for now, the legal and ethical red tape remains unyielding, leaving death row prisoners to face their fates alone—organs intact, redemption just out of reach.
