Convicted Rapist to Receive Heart Transplant?

I am a designated donor, but I doubt my husband will honor my wishes because his is disgusted by situations such as this we have seen in this transplant programs we have served. Truly, I’d rather take my organs to the grave rather than extend the life of a rapist or molester.

As they say, “only in America”. I say let’s put it before a jury of his peers as they did for this trial. I wonder what the verdict would be.

I can certainly understand why people would feel so negatively about this. It’s human nature and it would not sit well with me either. I always imagine that my organs would go to some teenager on the brink of death, with a wonderful full life to live. Or a single mother of 4, allowing her watch her children grow up. But we have to face the fact that this may not always be realistic. This isn’t a movie.

If we decide to create “categories” based on our own moral and ethical standards, where would it stop? Who would decide who lives or dies? And based on what standards? Spending many years in healthcare, as a provider I have to question, are some humans more deserving of life than others? The typical human side of me says “yes! Why should he live after what he did?!” But that reaction is exactly what convinces me it’s the wrong one.

Who is more deserving of life? Should that mother of 4 receive a heart transplant over a single woman? Should that teenager be given a liver over a 40 year old woman? Should someone convicted of a misdemeanor get priority over someone with a felony? Would someone determine that I am more deserving of life than you? Or visa versa?

I think that we enter very dangerous territory when we try to “play God,” as they say. Maybe the system isn’t what we’d all personally prefer when we attempt to romantize how our death may help some wonderful saintly person live a full life. However, maybe the system is what we need to make sure that we do not sit in judgment when it comes to giving or withholding life.

I agree with Kate’s perspective on this.

Using any sort of non-objective criteria for who gets an organ will start us down a very slippery slope, and I don’t like where we’ll end up.

I may not like the idea that this guy gets to live when someone else who needs a transplant will die, but I like it better than the road saying no would take us down.

And, as for the money issue… should medicaid not cover transplants either?

While Kate poses some interesting philosophical questions for us to ponder, i agree with the other posts. I don’t believe its playing God when I say he should be denied this operation. I’m not romanticizing who should get my organs or who’s life i’d chose to save if i should die. He’s a convicted rapist and predator of young girls thankfully serving time for his crimes. He doesn’t deserve a life saving organ transplant and he should be removed from the list. Just as he surrendered his freedom when he entered prison, he should surrender any extraordinary measures to save his life during his incarceration. If he lives long enough to get out of jail-and I’m a big believer in second chances- THEN he can go back on the list and pay for it himself….

Why shouldn’t we be able to decide who we donate our organs to? Parents are allowed to donate specifically to their children, why shouldn’t people set conditions on whom their own organs are donated to?

“Why shouldn’t we be able to decide who we donate our organs to? Parents are allowed to donate specifically to their children, why shouldn’t people set conditions on whom their own organs are donated to?”

Because it could lead to a slippery slope and leave out people in certain minority ethnic groups, religious groups, or whatever other way people want to discriminate.

What do you think the chances are that if you donated your organs that they would go to help a non-felon, maybe a little girl with a congenital heart disease, vs. someone like this guy?

A rapist in consideration of getting a heart transplant is a very specific situation that can be fixed by setting caps on how much can be spent for healthcare for prisoners, especially in an environment where states are already doing that for people on Medicaid. We don’t need more rules or regulations or people picking who will get their organs, maybe even because that person gave their family money or some other incentive.

As a transplant professional, I can honestly say that I believe that this man should have the opportunity to get a heart. We are not the morality police, we are in the business of saving lives with organs.

The system is set up to be without bias. You get an organ when an organ becomes available to you using an algorithm that takes into account your location, how sick you are, how long you have been waiting, your blood type and tissue typing. The system does NOT include your color, your ethnicity, your arrest record, your religion etc for a very good reason: the system must be without bias to work.

I don’t care what he did, he deserves the same shot at getting an organ. If we start eliminating prisoners, then we can eliminate convicted felons and hey, while we are at it, let’s throw in misdemeanors. If a rapist can’t have a transplant, how about a non-violent offender who embezzled?

It’s a very slippery slope, but one case like this doesn’t mean we need to break the entire system.

And yet, convicted killer Christian Longo (butchered his wife and small children then went on vacation to Mexico) wants to donate his organs (and be executed in a fashion that will make them viable) and he is not allowed to.

I say, give the convict, the convict’s organs. Give the tax payer, the taxpayer organs

Our son has a ‘fatal’ heart defect (Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome). He is 15 yrs old, has been pacer dependent since he was three and the organ donation committee says that since we chose the three surgery procedure (The Norwood Procedure) we basically gave him a band aid and he cannot be on the list until he is in ‘need’. He has one functioning chamber and it is paced 37% of the time; yet he’s not a candidate but a 55 yr old man who raped and sodomized a 13 yr old girl IS a candidate?
This entire situation is upsetting for many reasons…

SO,…let me get this straight. Prisoners – even those on death row – cannot DONATE their organs, but they are eligible to RECEIVE organs – andat the taxpayer expense. Pretty pathetic state of affairs.

This is wrong on so many levels. When a person is incarcerated, they lose their voting privileges plus many others. I don’t think they deserve transplants, especially at the taxpayers expense.

Well lets see here folks. I’m just going to have to take my organ donor card off of the files. Until this changes. Funny how the heart goes to this criminal, and not a contributing citizen. Funny how the US gives free healthcare and housing to criminals like this. But to first dollar tax payers, who work for small business, who cannot get health ins, or assistance from our government for healthcare. Somethings terribly wrong here folks. (If it were me, this guy should be missing another organ located a little lower) I would bet, after he gets his new heart, and stays in his free housing facility, he will then rape again. With the new heart you gave him.

He’s a convicted RAPIST! Why should he have a second chance at life in prison? He pretty much scarred a 13-year old little girl for life, but you really want to extend his life at taxpayers’ expense. That is ridiculous and maybe the criteria for transplant ricipients should be revised to avoid situations like this.

Crap like this irritates the hell out of me…..All you “slippery slope” people ALSO drive me crazy. Look, this guy is a sick bastard; a pedophile. Science has proven there is NO CURE for pedophilia. YES, you can so NO SEXUAL PREDITORS get ANY transplants…. That does NOT open the door for other people getting denied, by the way, DRUG ADDICTS ARE DENIED all the time. Common sense can dictate situations like this…To address the question of the single woman vs. woman with kids…whoever is on the list first or needs it the most gets it. Don’t overthink the morality issue~it is cut and dry and this jerk off needs to be hung out to dry….

He really should be in need of a penis transplant because his native one should be cut off!!

Update: 7:25 PM, Monday, April 25: It seems that Kenneth Pike may have had a change of heart (so to speak) on whether he wants a heart transplant anyway.

See this article from Rochester NY TV station citing his sister’s claim that Pike wants to opt out of the transplant.

I hope they are right. But this has clearly started a conversation that needs starting. Please continue to share your thoughts. I’ll follow up in a few days with some more information.

Trisha

Maybe there should be a law where if you are a convicted felon you give up the right to receive any kind of transplant. Just like you can no longer vote or possess a firearm when you are a convicted felon.

They should match him up with the death row inmate in Oregon who wants to donate his organs, but nobody will take them

How does anyone know he was going to get the transplant in the first place? What happened to HIPPA? I agree with many of you that it is a slippery slope downhill when we start ranking who is more deserving of an organ than another. While I certainly do not want my organs going to a convicted felon, I also don’t know that the young person who my get my organs won’t commit some felonious crime in the future. The only control we have is yes or no: donate or don’t donate.

Completely appauled that we would even consider spending even a small amount of money on a convicted rapist let alone enough money to help someone else who might bring something better to this world than someone who is locked up and wont be able to help our society out at all.

This is why I am against certain penalties for specific crimes. The murder, rape, sexual assault of any kind, pedophilia, should all be death penalty. Then this would not be a discussion. He would die as anyone would that didn’t have the surgery. We furnish these people with weight rooms, television and cable, three meals, free clothing, job training, education, alcohol and drug rehab., and all of the amenities of home except living there. It is not a vacation but a punishment. Period. Illinois was paying for Richard Speck the murderer of seven nurses, a sex change procedure when he was killed in prison. He had breast that he showed the world live on television before he wa attacked. Taxpayer dollars and he joked about it. How is Illinois doing financiallly?

the fact that we as a society should even have to discuss this is amazing to me. Yes some people are more deserving than others . use common sense!. this is not a theoretical classroom discussion. If i needed transplant (middle aged man) and a 20 year old needed one, I would have to say the 20 yr old should get it. Yes, we need to ration this because it is a limited resource, yes, some people are more valuable to society than other. I have been in health care for 20 plus years, and we do have limited resources, but the public just does’nt know it yet.

I donated my kidney to a non relative. I would NEVER NEVER NEVER donate to somebody who abuses their own body with alcohol, food or abuses somebody elses body in any way!!!! I would also NEVER have donated to somebody who performed a crime of any kind that caused somebody or animal to suffer in any way! UNOS—–I AM DISAPPOINTED IN YOU NOW. YOU USED TO BE MY HERO!

i got convicted of shoplifting when i was 12…..and i need a transplant. does that mean i won’t get one?

My son was a heart donor. I would hate to think his loving heart could have gone into a child rapist’s body. Not only should that scum NOT receive a transplant, he should be put down for the dog he is. I want all child molesters to go straight to death row where they belong.

Im Sorry…But theres people out there thats a lot better than a convicted rapist that needs a heart transplant. and further more why in hell help him when or by some chance he might be in prison for life? what the hell does he need the heart for?

To put it simply, it really sucks that murderers and rapists are getting better healthcare than your average person. I’m an education graduate student working three jobs and can’t afford to visit the doctor once a year. These guys get as much medical care as they need, including regular checkups, all on the taxpayers’ dollars.

The families of anyone whose loved ones’ hearts were donated within days of this man receiving one will ALWAYS wonder if their loved ones–presumably upstanding citizens who weren’t fans of child rapists–gave up a part of themselves, even posthumously, for this guy. That isn’t fair. We really need to have a harder screening process for who is “worthy” of organs, and let the families in on some details of who is getting them so they can say yes or no.

And, all of NY needs to say NO to this. If this was happening in my state, I’d be irate! Heck, I AM irate!

Does the state of New York pay for Medicare patients to receive transplants?

HIPPA is between the patient and medical staff. To my knowledge there is nothing that says the Board of Correction has to keep a patients medical status private. The prisoner could have advertised his condition.

This is not the end of the discussion. This issue WILL come up again. It will just be a matter of time. A few years ago the state of California had citizens dying while prisoners were getting transplants.

It is my understanding that convicts are not “allowed” to donate organs. Then why is it acceptable for them to receive them? You can’t have it both ways.

I agree with Shannon & Jen. I think that a law should be passed that prevents Sexual Predators (especially of minors) from receiving any sort of organ transplant.

I don’t know if I agree with ALL felons being prevented from receiving a transplant, because there are ‘levels’ of crime & someone in for a relatively small crime like theft shouldn’t be lumped into the same category as a pedophile. A thief DOES have a chance at rehabilitation…a pedophile will NEVER change their sexual orientation or behavior! It would be liking asking a heterosexual person to suddenly become a homosexual or vice versa…it just isn’t going to happen.

Pedophiles are predators & should be denied all but the most basic of care.

We need to mobilize a movement, contact your congressman and push for a new law that prohibits organ transplantation for Sexual Predators.

I used to work as an organ transplantation unit as a nurse, and it is exactly the reason why I changed my mind about organ donation. You don’t know how many alcoholics I saw get liver transplants only to start drinking again as soon as they got the new liver. Very few livers go to people with congenital problems, most end up going to people that have demonstrated self-inflicted destructive behaviors.

I also saw a drug addict get a ventricular assisted device (VAD) while waiting for a heart transplant. A drug addict that caused the heart failure from his drug addiction is on a list to get a new heart so that he can destroy a 2nd one.

I’m sorry….but based on my experience I am taking my organs with me!

YOU HAVE GOT TO BE F-N KIDDING ME……. what an absolute disgusting waste for time money and effort. STRING THIS JACK UP AND USE HIS ORGANS INSTEAD. stuff like this sickens me. Im sure he will get himself released early too for “good behavior”.

surgery jenn, `transplant professional`, he just broke into your house, pistol whipped & beat, you, your husband, your child, & your baby. your children wittnessed all of it. he exposed himself, kept yelling explenitives at you your husband & children, while stomping & kicking at all of you, constantly threatening death, to you & your family, brandishing a butcher knife to all of you, holding it to your 13 year old daughters throat, starts a cutting motion on her throat, u see a little blood start to trickle down her neck. what to do, what to do!! he breaks out his roll of duct tape, & slowly but methodically, begins to yank tape around your husbands face, and mouth, will he cover his nose & suffocate him?? binds his hands & feet, hog ties him, he looks over to you, your heart is pounding, almost thru your chest, he starts on you, binding you, as he did your husband. you cannot move, you cant yell, your helpless. he saunters over to your 13 yr old daughter, my god, whats next??? starts pawing & tearing at her clothing, you cant block out her blood curdling screams, he holds the knife to her throat, brutally rapes her, flips her over & sodomizes her, like a filthy animal, over & over, before your very eyes, & there isnt a thing you, as her mother, can do, to stop it from happening. this isnt how its supposed to b!!! this isnt how its supposed to happen!!! how will u ever be able to explain this horrific tragedy to her??? she`ll be traumatized the rest of her life!!! the doctors!!! what if she gets pregnant??? the psychiatrists!!!! permantely scarred by this monster, never to be the same. not to worry, hes first on your transplant list tomorrow, you can ask him anything you want to, when he recovers!!!

I believe that once you scar a person for life (A CHILD FOR GOD’S SAKE) that you lose many privelages in life (ie. life behind bars). All you “slippery slope people need to get off your political correctness hitch and figure out what is ethically correct and what is common sense. This criminal will probably be in jail for how many more years but will die in prison with a wonderful new heart. . . A heart that could have gone to a teenager that dreams of being able to walk up a flight of stairs or going on to college to help people versus hurt people. I wonder how many “slippery slope” people have actually been affected by a criminal as such. A system that needs to unbiased in order to work . . . .that’s a bunch of BS!!! Yikes, take my sticker off until someone fixes this!

Korea73

Well said!! That is exactly what I say. Lawmakers, judges…they would completely change their tune about releasing sexual predators if the person had raped THEIR daughter or were released into the neighborhood to live in the house next door. Let’s see how ‘philosophical’ they will get then!!

It’s so easy to be philosophical about the ethics when your not the victim and it has happened to someone else.

And in response to K’s comment…No, we are not suggesting that because you were convicted of shoplifting at the age of 12 (which would be exponged once you reach adulthood) should prevent you from receiving a transplant. Don’t be ridiculous!! How can you compare a convicted Sexual Predator of a Minor to shoplifting as a child? Really! Again…another ‘philosophical’ idiot at work again!!

It’s people like Kate U, Elizabeth, amd surgery Jenn that are so bound up with political correctness and bleeding heart liberalism that they could not recognize the horriable injustice in this situation. They wouldn’t know common horse sense if it kicked them in the ass. You my girls are pathetic!!!

1) Hippa does exist even in prison ! I worked for a prerelease medical unit and when the sheriffs dept came in I could not tell them if that prisoner even existed. The only thing that is public knowledge is their somewhat location.
2) Why should a convict receive better healthcare than a hard working person who has done no wrong That seems morally wrong on all levels I see kids denied treatment because their parents cannot afford why should his life be more valuable.
3) what chance does this man have of contributing anything of value to society !!!!! Sexual offenders are rarely cured of their sexual addiction so the twit can and most likely will get out with a new heart and reoffend !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I am 100% against this pervert getting a heart transplant… but if they give it to him and he has the ability to be released on parole in 2 years, I say they should castrate him and remove his prostate all at the same time that they do the heart transplant. If we can give, we should be able to take away, too… If we give him the chance for a longer life, we should at least ensure he won’t be ruining the lives of any other young girls once he’s released.

I disagree with Surgery Jenn, if this evil rapest gets the transplant I will take my name off the donars list. He doesn’t deserve to live, let alone waste more of the tax payers hard earned money!

I think that since he is no longer a civilian he should not qualify for such liberties as transplants. Just like our service members have special needs and qualification to separate them from civilians.

If he does not pay taxes he should not qualify to get benefits such as a heart transplant. No matter the crime.

If he was released and served his sentence to the community, then he could register for the transplant. Again, he would need to afford it. But this would not be on the tax payers backs who can barely afford to keep homes and support themselves.

just saying…

This man had NO regard for human life and yet we are to support his human life (I am being kind as he is not a human being despite what his sister thinks). He is not in jail for failing to pay his library fines. Maybe his victim should decide where the heart donation goes. My money says it doesn’t go to peddie PIKE. I would be more than willing to give that $800,000 to the 13 year old girl for her trauma and pain.

Just the other day I read an article regarding a man in prison for killing his wife and child who will not be allowed to donate his organs when he is executed. One of the many reasons that he would not be able to donate is due to the tax payers would have to foot the bill for the harvesting of the organs.

Hum!!!! We the tax payers are going to foot the bill to transplant a heart and the subsequent health care needed of a child sex offender. WHAT IS WRONG WITH THIS PICTURE? WHAT IS WRONG WITH SOCIETY?

I truly doubt the donor would ever wish his/her organs go to this human piece of trash! This is truly OUTRAGEOUS!!

To all those saying it’s a slippery slope, we can’t make those kinds of decisions – PLEASE TELL ME, IF IT WERE YOUR 13 YEAR OLD DAUGHTER, WOULD YOU STILL BE ADVOCATING FOR THIS TRASHBAG TO RECEIVE THIS HEART????

Didn’t Jesus sit down to dinner in the tax collectors house? Won’t this man meet his maker one day? Shouldn’t He be the one to decide this man’s punishment, not us? I hate what he did. I hate everything about this, but who am I to judge?

Shaunda; thank u for the thumbs up dear!! My name is Tom, 56, former viet nam era, Military Policeman, & NYS Corrections Officer. i have heard & witnessed soo many, sickening, outrageous, unbelieveable, unthinkable events in my lifetime, someone would never be able to stop their nightmares!! when i read something, that just `irks` me, i have to respond. is it that people `dont` think or, just, arent thinking?? my girlfriend read what i wrote, & said, ` it gave her the creeps`!! she thought i got a little too detailed in my response, i told her, jus tryin to make a point hon! what got me is, `jenn` said `surgery` & then added, `professional`!! when i thought about that in context, it was a little scary! jus wish i knew which hospital it was!! Happy Easter hon!

my mom was not even a canadiate in al. for a liver transplant because of her smoking and soical drinking even though she quit drinking when she found out her liver was bad how in the world can this man be a canadiate for a heart transplant when that heart could go to somebody who is not serving a jail sentence for raping a 13 yr old something needs to be done about this so this will not happen in the future like the other person said only in america

This is what happens when the do-gooders make the rules and set the agenda. Everything has to be “fair” so there is one set of rules that applies to everyone. And no one has any descretion or authority to break the rules. This is the perfect example of what is wrong with this country; why we will soon be surpassed by China; and why we are BROKE. But hey, we will save the life of a convicted rapist pedofile and give him medical treatment that probably 1/3 of the taxpayers in New York State can’t afford themselves. That’s okay, though, we can just raise the taxes on the “rich” and they can pay for it.

Kate U,

Why do people like you have to make such simple things so complicated. The only thing that needs to be addressed now is that prisoners are not eligible to be organ recipients. We don’t have to worry about other categories right now. We can address those when, and if, the situation occurs. It is as plain as day that this scumbag Piece of S*#! should never get a new heart while he is sitting in prison. Even beyond that simple fact, he doesn’t have any health coverage!!!!!!!! Why should the people of New York pay for this????? And we wonder why the health system is in crisis????!!!! Better yet, I have a great idea. If you and your do-gooder friends think he deserves a new heart, come up with the money out of your pocket and we can reevaluate the situation.

I’ve been a nurse for 30+ years. I’ve seen the wonderful benefits of organ donations to those who would have died without them. However, under no circumstances should a convicted pedofile or any other felon be able to receive a transplant. I agree with the others who have stated that once you become an inmate, you lose certain privileges.

Paying for the transplant with tax payer money is just the tip of the iceberg for this felon’s health care costs. He will have to take anti-rejection medications for the rest of his life. These meds are NOT cheap, but tax payers will continue to foot the bill until this man is no longer incarcerated.

I hope the tax payers of New York will raise a stink about this. This is unbelievable!

All I can say in reading everyone’s comments is that the world bubbles with hate and disgust on both sides. I am a clinical therapist and work for several counties with inmates. I have seen many sides of jail/prison that others have not. Unless you have experienced the prison system you really have no need to comment (dont base things off TV).

For those tired of supporting the jail system let your local representative know. However realize in doing so less people will be sentenced to jail/prison due to low funding. It becomes a double edge sword.

In this particular situation I understand the frustration but we as American’s have let things come to this and it will only continue with our “political correctness” For example right now there are over 6,500 laws in practice that the Bible summed up in 10 commandments. Change starts with us, not the government. We have become big cry babies about everything in the US.

If this man has repented sincerely and sought forgiveness, I hate to tell you he got it from the Lord and will enter Heaven. He is eligible just like you, me, even the worst of the worst like Osama. He will be judged on his actions by the creator, but we will be judged for our harsh words and beliefs. As the Bible puts it we all are sinners and no one is greater than another.

Luke 6:37 Do not judge, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned.

For those of you with the “how would you feel attitude if it were your daughter” I got raped when I was 14 yrs old.

All I leave you is with something our Lord stated many years ago in Matthew 6:14-16 – For if you forgive men when they sin , your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins

Me in a nutshell: psychologist who empathizes with those in prison, brother died and donated his organs, just two months ago I found out who this man is and how he is doing with my brother’s heart after so many years thanks to an article in the newspaper. I “get” the philosophical points more than you could know…the “deserving” of it. Was scared to know what he was like in case he was not a nice person. Thankfully, he turned out to be a nice person. If he turned out to be a pedophile, I think I’d immediately vomit.

I don’t care what kind of a ’slippery slope’ this might cause I absolutely would NOT want scum like this to receive my heart. This is seriously making me reconsider being a donor at all if this sort of thing can happen.

this is retarded. he is a rapeist. he is 55 years old and in prison, 15 years into a 18 to 40 year sentence. ok so he gets the transplant nd gets out in 3 more years… rapes another 13 year old girl. or he spends the next 25 years in prison where he will most likely die anyway because hes not going to get out till hes 80. y should tax payers pay $800,000 more to either put him back on the streets to rape again or to spend more money to put a roof over his head and food in his belly till he dies in there anyway. natural causes or natural causes… how bout you spend the money to put a shot in his arm and end the whole discussion

AFA *this* type of situation is concerned I think it should work like this:

Inmate is given a choice, accept a 1 mo. per $1000 of cost to have any operation, or not.

Also, acceptance and time accrued would be mitigated by a set amount by working in an additional program outside of those found in prisons (i.e. making license plates).

Having an additional 67 years added to your sentence, to be spent laboring, might make for lighter tax burdens.

I’ve posted an update to this article:

Thanks to you all for your comments!

intel247; i again, feel the urge to respond!! `the world bubbles w/hate & disgust, on both sides`, do u think there is possibly a good reason for this?? u say that u r a `clinical therapist`. i, am a product of the vietnam era. i have been in & out of the Veterans hosp, @ least twice a mnth for yrs. i have been run over by a delivery truck, on my motorcycle. i am VERY familiar w/the health care `system`, from drs, nurses, therapists, surgeons, psychologists, & psychiatrists. i must tell u, i am NOT impressed. u say `u have seen many sides of jail/prisons & others have no need to comment. as a former NYS Corrections Officer, i must say, werent u allowed your comments, & give your OPINION??? should we NOT let THERAPISTS comment on other issues??? `change starts w/us, not the govt`, wanna stop & rethink that a little bit??? can u remember the last time u VOTED on things the govt put into law, when THEY wanted to.

stop & think of ALL the laws that went into effect, that u DIDNT vote on. `individuals w/the, `how would u feel attitude if it happened to your daughter`, then u talk of youself being raped @ 14???? mus b me, i dont get the connection! what does that have to do w/anything???? let me shoot something @ u, i myself was raped, by another man, jus happened to b a family member. time & time again i was raped, from a young child, into my teens, should i give u the particulars of a male to male rape?? i think not. my `experience` happened long ago, life goes on. havent u dealt w/your rape, especially w/a `therapists mind`?? i have run into therapists like u, way out in left field!! SO, i leave u w/this, u talk about the bible, we all know how u feel about it now, how bout our comments, how bout lettin us, think, feel, say, do, our own thoughts about the lord, keep your therapy in therapy, & the bible in church. #1, for if u forgive men when they sin–DONT SIN!! wake-up!!!! smell the rapist!!!

surgery jenn, korea73 is absolutely right. And then how about your daughter who was raped needs a new heart and the heart she could have gotten goes to the person who raped your child? Oh, but then your daughter dies, and the rapist gets out of jail with his new healthy heart only to rape again, get sent back to jail, and then DIE there. I suppose you still wouldn’t care, would you? because you must be an evil witch who doesn’t care or think about the consequences such a thing could create.

I AM a heart transplant recipient, so I feel very close to this topic. I feel if NO ONE ELSE is a suitable candidate for a heart, then he can get the heart. But if another person and him are both good recipients for the heart, then the heart should go to the NON INMATE. Although this incarserated person was not given a LIFE SENTENCE, he deserves to wait until an UPSTANDING CITIZEN gets a chance for the heart FIRST.
Just my humble opinion
“God Bless those who die that allow others to live, Amen”

One of the reasons I am a monthly support of Doctors without Borders is that they provide medical care without judgment. The person who needs it most is the person who receives the care and it doesn’t matter if they are a child or a Janjaweed.

Do I like that a convicted child rapist is getting a heart transplant? No. But I don’t believe that the organ transplant system should get involved in moral judgments about who deserves a transplant in any way other than the medical. Once you start judging whether someone is a “good enough person” to get an organ, it’s a slippery slope. Who decides? By whose moral standards do we make this decision? There was a case several years ago of a young girl in Oklahoma who needed a kidney transplant – she met all the criteria in terms of health, ability to take antirejection meds, etc., but was ultimately denied. The only reason that appeared to have impacted that position was the fact that she had Down’s syndrome. Apparently, somebody who did not have an intellectual disability was deemed more “worthy” of a transplant. Was that right? Absolutely not. And if that wasn’t right, then neither is denying this man a heart transplant.

Beyond that, not giving him a transplant is a death sentence, which means he might as well have received the death penalty for his crime. Is his crime punishable by the death penalty? No, it isn’t. And therefore, the legal problems with denying him a transplant are huge.

I still don’t like the idea, but I am an organ donor and I believe UNOS should make this decision the same way Doctors without Borders makes theirs: purely based on medical need.

John D, God bless your humble opinion, Amen

Here we go again! People consistantly not using their brain, just jabber. A `good enough person`, doesnt even fit into this scenerio. People that keep reffering to `slippery slope`, should slide right off, into the ocean! People speak of `moral standards`, anotherwords, virtuous, or `morally good`. I think that speaks volumes in itself. Comparing a dwn syndrome person, w/a 2yr rapist, sodomizer?? Could u explain a comparison to me. No sense, what-so-ever. A simple, no brain decision. Open your 2 hands, in 1, u have a 13yr old, scarred for life, look in the other hand, the individual who for 2 yrs, scarred that child. Not sure about u, but w/out ANY hesitation, i know where my `morals` r firmly planted! U talk `morals`, what did he do to this childs `morals`?? For the life of me, i cant understand y it is soo complicated. should he get life, YES. Seems to me, alot of people r racking their `brain` about the legalities of this horrific crime, & again, r not putting the `VICTIM` 1st! Forget legal, moral, slip slopes, him, him, him!! `legal probs of not giving him a transplant r huge`, gimme a break! `His crime punishable b the death penalty`, no, well how bout we make it punishable by death, that would surely deter some1 from doin it again, correct? Jus the fact that u said it, is despicable. Legal probs, how sickening, we`re talkin a childs whole life, r u a lawyer perhaps? Lastly, `doctors w/out borders`?? I`m not even gonna touch that!

why should a convicted criminal a rapist nonetheless be given a heart instead of another person who can at least use it.