When it comes to safeguarding public health, the phrase “10 botched official” should ring alarm bells. Governments around the globe have, at times, turned what should have been swift, science‑driven actions into tangled, politicised dramas. Below we tally ten infamous episodes where official attempts to reign in deadly outbreaks backfired spectacularly, often because leaders cared more about image than lives.

10 MERS In South Korea

When Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) struck South Korea in 2015, the Park Geun‑hye administration was swiftly accused of turning a public‑health crisis into a bureaucratic nightmare. Critics pointed out the government’s opaque handling, especially the practice of shuttling suspected patients between hospitals before proper quarantine could be enforced. This not only endangered frontline medical staff but also amplified community exposure. Moreover, the absence of a dedicated, centralized treatment hub forced a fragmented approach that hampered containment efforts.

Public outrage intensified when officials refused to disclose which hospitals were treating MERS cases, fearing revenue loss for those facilities. In the vacuum of official information, internet users compiled their own lists, leading to police arrests for falsely naming hospitals as MERS treatment centers. The resulting climate of suspicion and rumor‑mongering eroded trust in the health system.

Journalist Se‑Woong Koo summed up the episode, arguing that the botched response reflected a “crony‑capitalist state” where corrupt elites prioritize power over public welfare, breeding systemic incompetence and deep‑seated public distrust.

9 SARS In China

The 2002‑2003 SARS crisis exposed glaring flaws in China’s epidemic management. While Mao Zedong had once poetically bid “Farewell to the God of Plagues,” the government’s instinct to protect its international image led to severe information suppression. A pivotal report from a Ministry of Health task force in Guangdong was sealed as top‑secret, delaying its release for three days while officials scrambled to locate an authorized reader. By the time the bulletin finally reached hospitals, many clinicians were on Chinese New Year leave, further stalling response.

Amid the spread, Health Minister Zhang Wenkang confidently assured the world that “China is a safe place to work and live, including to travel.” The World Health Organization, however, lodged complaints about governmental interference, noting that China barred direct contact between Taiwanese health officials and the WHO, citing sovereignty disputes. Meanwhile, the public was fed a mixed diet of misinformation: rumors of bird flu, anthrax, and even vinegar‑filled rooms as preventive measures proliferated online.

In hindsight, the SARS episode highlighted the pitfalls of what scholars term “fragmented authoritarianism,” where central directives clash with local implementation, contrasting sharply with the more coordinated responses observed in Hong Kong and Taiwan.

8 Cholera In Zimbabwe

In 2008, as Zimbabwe’s political landscape roiled between ZANU‑PF and the opposition MDC, cholera surged through the nation’s already fragile health system. President Robert Mugabe dismissed the outbreak as a Western conspiracy, lambasting the United States and United Kingdom as “crooks… guilty of deliberate lies to commit acts of aggression.” Hours after neighboring South Africa declared the border a disaster zone, Mugabe claimed the disease was under control—a statement starkly contradicted by World Health Organization experts who noted that he had barred a French medical team from entering the country.

The health ministry eventually conceded that central hospitals were “literally not functioning,” underscoring the dire state of Zimbabwe’s medical infrastructure. In 2013, a UN investigation revealed that the government had even dismissed Georges Tadonki, head of the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs in Zimbabwe, for attempting to coordinate a robust cholera response. The tribunal later ruled that political considerations had eclipsed humanitarian imperatives.

The cholera crisis claimed over 4,000 lives, a tragic testament to how political denial and bureaucratic obstruction can magnify the toll of an otherwise manageable disease.

7 Nipah Virus In Malaysia

When the novel Nipah virus erupted in Malaysia’s Perak state in September 1998, officials initially mistook it for Japanese encephalitis—a mosquito‑borne illness familiar to the region. This misdiagnosis led authorities to launch fogging campaigns and mass vaccination drives that did nothing to curb the real culprit: a lethal encephalitis transmitted from fruit bats to pigs, then to humans via contaminated pig‑swill.

The confusion persisted until Singapore reported cases in abattoirs in March 1999, prompting a ban on Malaysian pork imports and a more focused containment effort. Ultimately, Malaysia resorted to culling over one million pigs and issuing public health advisories—mask‑wearing, rigorous hand‑washing after handling livestock, and thorough sanitation of animal transport cages.

The outbreak devastated the nation’s billion‑dollar pork industry, and disgruntled farmers sued the government for its mishandling. Their grievances centered on the wasted lives and livelihoods caused by the initial misidentification and delayed response.

6 Plague In India

In 1994, the city of Surat in Gujarat faced a sudden plague outbreak that threw the Indian government into disarray. Mixed messages flooded the media: an official bulletin confirmed the presence of plague, while the state’s chief minister denied it, insisting the illness was merely pneumonia. This contradictory messaging sparked widespread panic, prompting citizens to don masks and handkerchiefs—ineffective barriers against a flea‑borne bacterial disease.

Compounding the chaos, Rajasthan residents began exterminating rats in a desperate bid to halt transmission, inadvertently dislodging infected fleas and possibly accelerating the spread. The government’s initial attempt to conceal the crisis faltered under pressure from trade partners such as Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates, who demanded WHO involvement. Even then, WHO officials lamented the Indian authorities’ sluggish sample sharing and the press‑driven “science by the media” approach.

Rumors of engineered bioweapons from hostile neighbours swirled, further eroding public confidence. The episode underscored how bureaucratic hesitancy and political denial can amplify the impact of even a well‑understood disease.

5 AIDS In The United States

The 1980s AIDS epidemic in America unfolded against a backdrop of political inertia. When the first cases appeared in 1981, the Reagan administration delayed meaningful action, resulting in sluggish funding for research and a near‑absence of nationwide education campaigns. The early victims—predominantly gay men—became targets of moral condemnation, with figures like Reverend Jerry Falwell branding AIDS “the wrath of God upon homosexuals,” while Reagan’s communications chief Pat Buchanan dismissed the crisis as “nature’s revenge.”

It wasn’t until 1987, after 59,572 reported cases and 27,909 deaths, that President Reagan finally addressed the epidemic publicly. Meanwhile, Senator Jesse Helms amended appropriations bills to bar AIDS education that “encouraged or promoted homosexual activity,” effectively stymying safe‑sex initiatives. The administration’s reluctance to confront the disease head‑on is widely viewed as a calculated move to avoid alienating its conservative base.

Analysts contend that this political calculus cost tens of thousands of lives, illustrating how ideological bias can impede urgent public‑health interventions.

4 BSE In Britain

Britain’s bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) saga, colloquially known as mad cow disease, began quietly in the 1970s before exploding onto the world stage in the 1990s. Early government statements denied any link between BSE and the human variant, Creutzfeldt‑Jakob disease (vCJD). Agriculture Minister John Gummer even took a public bite of a hamburger to prove British beef was safe, a stunt that backfired when his daughter refused the meat and he ate it himself, calling it “absolutely delicious.”

The official acknowledgment of danger only arrived in 1996, after several human vCJD cases were confirmed. A 2000 review praised some containment measures but also highlighted systemic denialism, bureaucratic inertia, and lax enforcement. A pivotal misstep was the 1987 decision to allow mechanically recovered meat from carcasses into the food chain—a choice that later facilitated the spread of prions through burgers and meat pies.

The BSE crisis shattered public confidence in UK food safety regulators and underscored the peril of downplaying scientific warnings for economic or political convenience.

3 Spanish Flu In Samoa

In November 1918, the Spanish influenza stormed the Pacific island of Samoa, then administered by New Zealand. Lieutenant‑Colonel Robert Logan, the island’s governor, allowed the passenger ship Talune—already quarantined in Fiji—to dock without any health precautions. Infected passengers disembarked, and the virus quickly swept across Upolu and Savai’i, overwhelming the islands’ meagre medical facilities.

Logan dismissed an offer of aid from American Samoa, claiming he thought the request was meant for his wife. He also severed radio contact with Pago Pago, allegedly in retaliation for American Samoa’s quarantine of Western Samoan mail. Consequently, no external medical assistance arrived until an Australian vessel delivered four doctors and twenty orderlies weeks later.

The disaster claimed roughly 22 percent of Samoa’s population. A 1947 United Nations report labeled it “one of the most disastrous epidemics recorded anywhere in the world during the present century, so far as the proportion of deaths to the population is concerned.” Logan later wrote that the tragedy was “temporary” and that Samoans would “later… remember all that has been done for them in the previous four years,” a starkly detached assessment of the catastrophe.

2 Meningitis In Zambia

June 2015 saw a sudden meningococcal meningitis flare‑up at Kabompo Secondary School in Zambia’s North‑Western Province. Three students died, and three more were hospitalized. Government agencies scrambled to disseminate accurate information, but mixed messages from the Ministries of Health and Education sparked panic. Some students even blamed witchcraft, leading to a violent protest on July 4 that damaged school property and prompted parents to pull their children out of class, demanding a “cleansing” of the institution.

Confusion deepened when Health Minister Joseph Kasonde told reporters the school had been closed for two weeks, while Education spokesperson Hillary Chipango insisted the school remained open, merely noting that students were refusing to attend. Critics argued that the lack of coordinated communication prevented the public from learning that the disease is treatable with antibiotics and easily preventable through vaccination.

The episode illustrates how bureaucratic misalignment can fuel superstition, jeopardize public health, and erode trust in official institutions.

1 AIDS In South Africa

South Africa’s fight against HIV/AIDS was dramatically derailed after President Thabo Mbeki embraced a fringe scientific view championed by virologist Peter Duesberg, who denied that HIV caused AIDS. Mbeki’s administration promoted the notion that AIDS stemmed from drug use, promiscuity, blood transfusions, parasitic infections, and malnutrition rather than a viral pathogen. This denialist stance was partly motivated by concerns over the cost of antiretroviral drugs and a belief that the disease’s prevalence reflected broader socioeconomic deficiencies.

Under Mbeki, a cadre of scientists proclaimed alternative treatments, while the Ministry of Health refused to provide antiretroviral therapy to HIV‑positive citizens until late 2003. Health Minister Manto Tshabalala‑Msimang famously suggested that a diet rich in olive oil, beetroot, lemon, and garlic could cure AIDS, even showcasing a fruit‑and‑vegetable display at a Toronto AIDS conference. Deputy Health Minister Nozizwe Madlala‑Routledge, who voiced criticism of the denialist policy, was dismissed in 2007, ostensibly for corruption but widely seen as retaliation for her outspoken stance.

South Africa’s denialist era ended with Jacob Zuma’s election in 2009, and a Harvard analysis later estimated that Mbeki’s policies may have caused over 300,000 premature deaths. The tragedy underscores the lethal consequences of politicising science and ignoring established medical consensus.

Why These Cases Matter: The 10 Botched Official Lessons

From MERS in South Korea to AIDS in South Africa, each of these ten stories offers a cautionary tale about the perils of putting politics before public health. By studying these missteps, policymakers can better prepare for future crises, ensuring that transparency, science, and swift action replace denial, secrecy, and bureaucratic inertia.

Circumcision ranks among the oldest and most widespread surgical procedures on the planet, tracing its roots back to ancient Egypt. While the vast majority of these operations proceed without a hitch, every so often a catastrophic mistake occurs, leaving victims with physical devastation and lasting psychological trauma. These are the 10 horrifically botched procedures that changed lives forever, some survivors scarred for life and others tragically lost.

10 A Man’s Worst Nightmare

Elective circumcisions on adults are rare, yet 56‑year‑old Johnny Lee Banks Jr. from Alabama decided to go under the knife. When he awoke, the shock of his own missing organ hit him – his penis was gone. He and his wife sued, alleging excruciating pain for him and a “loss of consortium” claim for her.

The judge dismissed the suit, citing vague details like an absent operation date and time. Hospital attorneys slammed the claim as a smear, while granting Banks a 30‑day window to amend his filing. Already battling diabetes that had led to double‑leg amputation, Banks left the courtroom in a wheelchair, tears streaming as he faced a grim medical future.

9 Ryan Heydari

In January 2013, 22‑day‑old Ryan Heydari’s parents were swayed by a family physician to have their newborn circumcised at an Ontario hospital. The pediatrician assured them the procedure would be routine, yet after the surgery the doctor claimed everything was “uneventful” and free of bleeding.

Contrary to the surgeon’s report, the infant’s father observed worsening hemorrhage. Ryan lost roughly 40 % of his blood volume, slipping into hypovolemic shock and ultimately bleeding to death. Hospital officials merely advised the operating pediatrician to be more “mindful” in the future, while the emergency physician received a gentle reprimand. The parents’ formal complaint was dismissed without clarification of the mishap.

8 ‘The Thing Was Like Gone’

In August 2013, Maggie Rhodes brought her three‑month‑old son Ashton to a low‑cost clinic for a circumcision. The moment she heard her baby’s high‑pitched screams—what Rhodes called “life‑and‑death” cries—she rushed in to discover a grotesquely disfigured penis. The doctor, instead of cutting around the glans, had sliced upward, leaving the organ severely mutilated. Rhodes summed up the horror with the chilling line, “the thing was like gone.”

She sued Christ Community Health Services (CCHS), demanding the clinic’s staff credentials. CCHS refused, leaving Rhodes to pursue the case without a clear picture of the medical team responsible for her son’s injury.

7 Unsightly

In December 2008, Keka and Steven Lorenzana from Coral Gables, Florida, entrusted South Miami Hospital with their infant son’s circumcision, performed by OB/GYN Dr. Molina. Three years later, they sued, alleging the physician had left an excessive amount of foreskin on the ventral (underside) shaft, resulting in a permanently scarred and “unsightly” appearance.

Pediatricians had initially reassured the parents that the child would “grow into it,” but the Lorenzanas argued that the lasting visual defect would cause emotional and psychological harm as their son matured, prompting legal action focused on the aesthetic damage.

6 Two Instead Of One

A four‑year‑old boy in Texas was persuaded by a pediatrician that his foreskin was tight and required removal. After the first circumcision, the surgeon reported minor bleeding and a successful outcome. However, a nurse’s follow‑up revealed escalating hemorrhage, prompting an immediate return to the operating room for a second procedure.

Days later, the child endured excruciating pain and, astonishingly, began urinating from two separate holes. The over‑cauterization had created a fistula, forcing the youngster to sit while urinating to manage the dual streams. Blood‑spattered urine led the parents to seek another doctor, who diagnosed a penile fistula and warned that numerous corrective surgeries would be necessary.

5 The Windy City Blues

In September 2015, Chicago mother Miriam Rodriguez gave birth to a son who, shortly after delivery, underwent a hospital circumcision. She later sued the medical facility and its physicians, alleging the procedure left her baby with disfigurement, tissue loss, and a loss of penile sensation.

The lawsuit seeks compensation for lost wages, attorney fees, future medical expenses, and punitive damages exceeding $50,000. Rodriguez also claims the ordeal inflicted “mental pain and anguish” and robbed her family of a “normal life,” though the case’s ultimate resolution remains uncertain.

4 ‘We’ll Forget You Never’

Eleven‑day‑old Brayden Tyler Frazier succumbed two days after a circumcision, his fragile blood‑clotting system compromised by hemophilia. The procedure triggered uncontrolled hemorrhaging; despite aggressive treatment with plasma, platelets, and clotting factors, the bleeding persisted.

The massive blood loss precipitated liver and kidney failure, uncontrollable seizures, and ultimately his death. His obituary mournfully declares, “We’ll forget you never, the child we had but never had and yet will have forever,” underscoring the tragic finality of a botched surgery compounded by an undiagnosed bleeding disorder.

3 Terrel Hall

One week after giving birth, Los Angeles mother Melanie Hall took her newborn son Terrel for a routine circumcision. Moments after the child disappeared into a back‑room, Hall heard blood‑curdling screams. Rushing in, she discovered that the tip of the boy’s penis had been amputated, with roughly 85 % of the glans missing.

Hall sued the manufacturer of the medical clamp used during the operation, alleging a faulty device caused the catastrophe. The court later awarded her $4.7 million—$1 million of which covered legal fees—recognizing the lasting need for pediatric urologist visits, possible future surgeries, and psychiatric care for the trauma endured.

2 The Ritual

In September 2012, a Brooklyn infant died after contracting herpes simplex virus type 1 during an Orthodox Jewish circumcision ritual known as metzitzah b’peh. The ceremony involves the mohel (ritual circumciser) placing his mouth on the infant’s penis to draw blood away from the incision—a practice intended to cleanse the wound.

Unfortunately, the virus entered the newborn’s bloodstream via saliva, traveling to the brain and causing fatal inflammation. Experts note that herpes in infants is almost always deadly because they lack the immunity adults possess, turning a sacred rite into a tragic medical disaster.

1 David Reimer

Perhaps the most haunting tale on this list is that of Bruce Reimer. In 1966, at seven months old, he was taken for a circumcision performed by a doctor who rarely did the procedure. The surgeon used an electric cauterizing instrument with a sharp needle, botching the operation and leaving the foreskin irreparably damaged.

His parents were told reconstruction was impossible, and under psychologist John Money’s guidance, they raised Bruce as a girl named Brenda, undergoing multiple surgeries and hormone therapy to create a functional vagina. Though initially compliant, young Brenda soon rejected the imposed gender, famously ripping off a dress her mother made.

In his teens, after learning the truth, Bruce reclaimed his male identity, adopting the name David. He married, became a stepfather to three children, but tragedy struck repeatedly: his brother’s suicide in 2002, financial hardship after job loss, a divorce, and ultimately David’s own suicide in 2004 at age 38.

His story remains a stark reminder of the profound psychological damage that can follow a botched circumcision, echoing the cautionary theme of this list.

When the operating room lights flicker on, most of us expect the steady hands of seasoned surgeons to guide us safely through. Yet, the unsettling reality is that “never events” – catastrophic mistakes that should never happen – still occur, with estimates of up to 80 such incidents each week in the United States, according to the American Medical News. The following 10 unimaginable 038 cases illustrate the most harrowing surgical errors ever recorded, each a stark reminder that even the best‑trained professionals can falter.

10 unimaginable 038: A Lesson in Surgical Oversight

10 A Man’s Worst Nightmare

In November 1999, 67‑year‑old Hurshell Ralls entered the Clinics of North Texas in Wichita Falls for a bladder‑cancer biopsy that confirmed a malignancy. The planned operation involved removing his bladder alone. When Ralls awoke, he discovered, to his absolute horror, that his penis and testicles had also vanished. The surgeons claimed that, during the bladder removal, they believed the cancer had spread to his genitalia, yet they never took tissue samples to verify this suspicion, deeming further testing “not worthwhile.” A Dallas pathologist later examined slides of the removed tissue and determined there was no penile cancer at all. Reconstructive options were impossible because insufficient tissue remained.

Despite the gravity of the mistake, the physicians faced no disciplinary action, and none of their medical licenses were suspended. Ralls pursued legal action against both the doctors and the clinic, ultimately reaching an out‑of‑court settlement for an undisclosed sum. No amount of money could ever replace the organs that were taken without his consent.

9 Wrong Infant

In 2016, newborn Nate Melton was delivered at University Medical Center in Lebanon, Tennessee. After a routine post‑delivery check, a nurse entered the parents’ room and delivered the shocking news: their baby had been mistakenly identified as another child and had undergone an unnecessary frenulectomy – a minor procedure that trims the tissue under the tongue to address tongue‑tie. The operating physician admitted the mix‑up, apologizing and assuring the family that the infant “barely cried” during the surgery. The Meltons announced their intention to sue the hospital once their son received a Social Security number, though the long‑term impact of the unnecessary procedure remains uncertain.

8 Wrong Limb

In 1995, 52‑year‑old Willie King was scheduled for a leg amputation at University Community Hospital in Tampa, Florida. While Dr. Ronaldo R. Sanchez was incising the tissue, a nurse reviewing King’s chart began to sob, prompting the surgeon to realize the catastrophic error: the wrong leg was being prepared for removal. By the time the mistake was recognized, the incorrect limb had already been sterilized and draped, leaving no chance to reverse the procedure.

Dr. Sanchez defended his actions by stating that both of King’s legs appeared diseased and that miscommunication among staff led him to believe he was operating on the correct side. Previously, another patient had claimed Dr. Sanchez removed a toe without consent during a foot‑tissue excision. Ultimately, Sanchez was fined $10,000 and his medical license was suspended for 140 days.

7 Four Years Of Pain

In 2007, 56‑year‑old Carol Critchfield underwent a routine hysterectomy and bladder‑support surgery at Simi Valley Hospital in California. Three days later, she returned with severe abdominal pain. An X‑ray was performed, and physicians dismissed her symptoms as extreme constipation, sending her home. The following year, while at work, she experienced sweating, blurred vision, and fainted, only to be told she suffered a gastrointestinal issue and advised to avoid spicy foods. These dismissals continued for years.

By 2011, Critchfield presented with vaginal bleeding, which doctors attributed to an ovarian cyst. During surgery to remove the ovaries, surgeons discovered a massive mass: a surgical sponge inadvertently left inside her abdomen during the 2007 operation. The sponge had become encased in scar tissue, leading to a four‑year intestinal obstruction that required removal of a large segment of her intestines. She sued Simi Valley Hospital and five physicians, reaching an undisclosed settlement in 2014.

6 Wrong Kidney

In 2013, a 76‑year‑old dialysis patient was taken to Mount Sinai Medical Center in New York for removal of a failing kidney. The surgeon, however, mistakenly excised the healthy kidney instead. Mount Sinai, a prestigious teaching institution, refused to disclose the identities of both the surgeon and the patient, and even barred news crews from filming outside the facility. Hospital officials blamed the mistake on the patient’s having “two bad kidneys,” a claim that did little to soothe the victim.

After the error became public, the surgeon was terminated, though the patient defended him, insisting the operation was otherwise successful. The patient subsequently underwent a corrective surgery to replace the removed kidney with the proper, failing one.

5 Neurosurgery

In 2013, 53‑year‑old Regina Turner was scheduled for a left‑brain craniotomy at St. Clare Health Center in St. Louis, Missouri. The surgeon, Dr. Armond Levy, performed the skull opening on the wrong side of her head. Upon realizing the mistake, Dr. Levy sutured the incision and arranged for the correct operation six days later, but the damage was already done.

Turner emerged with a severe speech impediment and required round‑the‑clock care. She sued both the hospital and Dr. Levy for negligence. The following year, she reached an undisclosed settlement, while Dr. Levy faced no state disciplinary action and continued practicing medicine, despite the grave error.

4 Wrong Patient

On November 20, 1998, 66‑year‑old Adesta L. Hytha went to Moffitt Cancer Center in Tampa, Florida, for a lumpectomy – a modest removal of a tumor and surrounding tissue from her left breast. After the procedure, she awoke to discover her entire left breast had been removed. Dr. Charles E. Cox, head of the breast‑cancer program, claimed he found additional cancer during surgery and felt compelled to perform a full mastectomy.

In reality, Hytha had been mistaken for another patient scheduled for a mastectomy. The truth was concealed from her for ten days, and Dr. Cox denied any wrongdoing. Hospital officials blamed the mix‑up on staff bringing the wrong patient into the OR and on Dr. Cox’s failure to review the chart. Hytha chose not to sue, settling for an undisclosed sum, and declined a hospital offer to reconstruct her breast.

3 Wrong Testicle

Veteran Benjamin Houghton was diagnosed with metastatic testicular cancer in 1989 and underwent chemotherapy, which successfully eliminated the disease. Over time, his left testicle atrophied, causing pain and the risk of cancer recurrence. In June 2006, he elected to have the painful left testicle removed at the West Los Angeles VA Medical Center.

During the procedure, the surgeon mistakenly excised the healthy right testicle. Houghton, his wife Monica, and their attorneys sued the VA for $200,000 in future health‑care costs plus undisclosed damages. Losing his functional testicle threatened his hormonal balance, potentially leading to depression, weight gain, fatigue, and osteoporosis due to a sudden drop in testosterone.

2 Wrong Eye

In 2015, one‑year‑old Fernando Jonathan Valdez from Ciudad Obregón, Sonora, Mexico, was battling advanced congenital cancer of his left eye. After chemotherapy failed, surgeons removed the diseased left eye. Tragically, the surgeon mistakenly extracted the healthy right eye, leaving the child permanently blind in the remaining eye while the cancer‑ridden left eye stayed in its socket.

The parents reported the mistake to police, prompting an internal investigation at the Medical Unit of High Specialty Mexican Social Security Institute. They hired an attorney, sued the hospital for negligence, and filed complaints with the National Commission of Human Rights and the Medical Arbitration Commission. The responsible surgeon was suspended and investigated, but regardless of the legal outcome, the boy will never regain sight.

1 Wrong Organ

In October 2011, 32‑year‑old Maria De Jesus, who was 21 weeks pregnant with her fourth child, went to Queen’s Hospital near London for an appendectomy. The operation was to be performed by trainee Dr. Yahya Al‑Abed under supervision of Dr. Babatunde Coker. Unfortunately, Dr. Coker was eating lunch and unaware the surgery was underway. During the procedure, De Jesus began bleeding heavily, and Dr. Al‑Abed, mistakenly believing he was removing the appendix, excised her ovary instead.

Three weeks later, still suffering from untreated appendicitis, De Jesus returned in excruciating pain. She underwent another surgery, but the delay proved fatal: she died on the operating table, and her unborn child was stillborn. Both surgeons were found guilty of “serious misconduct,” yet a tribunal later deemed them not a danger to the public, allowing them to continue practicing medicine.

Whether one stands for or against the death penalty, there is no denying it has been part of human existence throughout history. Once calculated to ensure an excruciating death before witnesses, with long suffering before blessed relief (such as crucifixion), it was later changed in many societies to be quick and merciful, at least in some cases. Often piety has served as a part of the execution, a priest participating to demonstrate human subservience to divine judgment. And often the execution has not been as incident free as the executioners’ desired.

Today, most executions are performed with at least a nod towards merciful speed and minimal suffering. Such has not always been the case. And yet, on regrettable occasions, some executions designed to be horrific for the miscreant being dispatched have somehow been botched to become even more horrific than their perpetrators intended. Here are 10 examples of executions which did not work out exactly as the executioners planned. Though in the end, the hoped for result was achieved.

10. Mary, Queen of Scots, beheading, 1587

Mary Stuart, often mistakenly believed to have been a half-sister of England’s Queen Elizabeth I, was in fact her first cousin, once removed. She was the daughter of Scotland’s King James V, and as his only surviving child, (or rather, legitimate child) claimed the title Queen of Scots. The complicated interaction between the rulers of Scotland, England, and France are far too complex to discuss here, beyond saying that her claim to the Scottish throne was disputed. So was her one time claim to the throne of England, despite both English and Scottish Catholics supporting her, to say nothing of the French. Her cousin Elizabeth, a Protestant, was not amused by Mary’s pretensions, and when Mary fled to England and threw herself on Elizabeth’s mercy, desirous of her protection, the Queen had her placed under house arrest.

Mary resided in several different castles and great houses as a prisoner of Elizabeth’s, while she and her followers involved themselves in intrigues and plots to obtain the throne. In 1586, while in the 19th year of existing as an involuntary guest of Elizabeth, Mary was convicted of treason against the Queen and sentenced to death. Elizabeth ignored pleas for mercy. Mary was scheduled to be beheaded in February, 1587, at Fotheringhay. An executioner and an assistant were selected to accomplish the deed in the Great Hall, using an axe. Of course, church officials and other high-placed personages were on hand to establish the legitimacy of the execution, as well as to ensure the salvation of Mary’s immortal soul.

While her soul may have found mercy, her corporeal being did not. The first blow of the axe struck Mary not across the neck, but in the back of her head. A second blow proved to be more accurately aimed, but it did not fully sever her head from her body. It took a third swing of the axe to complete the deed and allow the executioner to hold her head aloft for the witnesses to contemplate. After several burials and exhumations, Mary eventually was interred in Westminster Abbey, where she lies in a chapel shared with, among others, her first cousin once removed, Elizabeth I. Mary’s son later ruled as King of England and Scotland as James the VI and II.

9. William Kidd, hanging, 1701

Under his title of Captain, William Kidd is nearly synonymous with pirate. Tales of Captain Kidd’s piracy, his ruthless dealings with friends and foes, and his buried treasure, are a major vein in the lode of pirate lore. Evidence indicates he was likely not a pirate at all, but a privateer of singularly poor judgment and inept political skills. He did make a small fortune capturing ships of his sovereign’s enemies. And he made enemies of his own among royal governors and military leaders in the Atlantic, the Caribbean, the Indian Ocean, and in colonial New York. Whether he buried vast hordes of loot in the latter, or anywhere else for that matter, has intrigued treasure hunters ever since. Kidd’s life and career has always presented a murky picture. Yet all agree he was executed for piracy in 1701, in London.

During the trial which preceded his execution, Kidd produced evidence in the form of warrants and letters of marque, as well as personal correspondence. The documents supported his assertions of innocence of piracy and other crimes. During the trial the evidence vanished, making conviction easier for his enemies to obtain, though they were discovered in the early 20th century. At any rate, his enemies obtained a conviction, and Kidd was sentenced to be executed by hanging at Execution Dock, London, on May 23, 1701. In the custom of the day he was allowed to purchase food and drink while spending his last days in prison, and did so extravagantly, especially the drink. When he was delivered for his execution, he was drunk.

After delivering a harangue protesting his innocence Kidd was dropped from the gallows. The rope broke, and instead of finding himself standing before his maker, Kidd groveled on the ground with the noose around his neck, likely considerably more sober. He reiterated his claims of innocence to the shocked crowd as he mounted the gallows a second time, citing divine intervention as proof of his assertions. The unabashed executioners produced a second rope and assisted Kidd to a second drop, which proved more effective. His tarred body was displayed suspended from a gibbet by the Thames, a warning to seafarers over the perils of piracy. Remnants of his body were said to be there for three years after his death.

8. Robert-Francois Damiens, dismemberment by horse, 1757

Regicide, the assassination of a monarch, has been frowned upon throughout history, with some of the more horrifying means of execution reserved for those who committed, or attempted to commit, such a horrid crime. In France up until the 18th century, the penalty of execution by dismemberment was the preferred means of dispatching regicides. Dismemberment was the forcible removal of the limbs from the living body. In the cradle of civilization which was Bourbon France, the use of horses to provide the motive force to achieve dismemberment was favored by the 18th century. Such a method was applied to Robert-Francois Damiens, a lowly servant convicted of the attempted assassination of Louis XV in 1757.

Damiens succeeded in wounding the King with a knife, which inspired His Majesty to confess his numerous extramarital affairs to his wife, Queen Marie, before he realized the injury was not serious. Serious or no, the attack led Damiens to being tried and convicted for attempting to assassinate the King, and his conviction led to his sentence of execution by dismemberment. But first the former servant was submitted to torture to ensure any co-conspirators did not escape justice. Damiens was burned with red-hot irons, the hand which struck the King was covered in molten lead, and he was liberally doused with boiling oil. He was then handed over to his executioner, who castrated him before tying each of his limbs to a horse. When started, the horses were to complete the dismemberment.

The horses’ combined strength proved insufficient to separate the assassin’s limbs from his body. While witnesses watched the application of justice the executioner used a knife to sever the tendons holding together Damiens’ tortured body. The horses were then reattached, and Damiens partially disjointed body was more readily rent asunder. The successful separation of limbs from body brought applause from the assembled witnesses. One of the witnesses who left behind an account of the proceedings was Giacomo Casanova, who wrote, “We had the courage to watch the dreadful sight for four hours…” Damiens body was burned. Some say he was still alive, though that assertion defies belief.

7. Henry Wirz, hanging, 1865

Washington DC’s Old Capitol Prison had a long and interesting history by the time of the American Civil War. Originally built as an expedient, to serve as a temporary capitol in the aftermath of the British burning of Washington in 1814, it had been a warehouse, a schoolhouse, and a boarding house before the Civil War. John C. Calhoun, former Vice President and a Senator from South Carolina, died there while in residence in 1850. In 1861 the government purchased the building to serve as a prison for captured Confederates and their sympathizers. Belle Boyd and John Singleton Mosby were both imprisoned there. In 1865 Henry Wirz, former commander of the Confederate prisoner of war camp at Andersonville, Georgia, was incarcerated in the prison.

Wirz was tried for war crimes committed during his tenure at Andersonville, including murder, conspiracy to commit murder, and other lesser crimes. Over the past century apologists and revisionists have claimed he was railroaded, that no witnesses identified him as committing any of the crimes for which he was accused, and that he was used as a scapegoat. Be that as it may, a military tribunal led by General Lew Wallace, a veteran of Gettysburg and the future author of Ben Hur, convicted him of the charges, and he was sentenced to death by hanging. The execution was scheduled for November 10, 1865, at Old Capitol Prison, after President Andrew Johnson did not grant clemency. About 200 witnesses were on the grounds of the prison to witness the hanging, along with over 100 Union troops as guards.

Execution by hanging required the hangman to accurately ascertain the weight of the condemned, to ensure the fall was of sufficient length to break the neck. Too long of a drop could result in decapitation, too short and the victim would slowly strangle. The latter occurred in Wirz’s case, and the 200 witnesses watched as the condemned writhed and twisted, kicking and twitching, as he was gradually choked to death. Wirz was one of just two men executed for war crimes committed during the American Civil War, though several others were executed for spying or for crimes committed as guerrillas during the conflict.

6. William Kemmler, electrocution, 1890

William Kemmler holds the distinction of being the first human formally executed using electricity. Convicted for the brutal murder of his common law wife, Kemmler was incarcerated in New York as Westinghouse and Edison’s “voltage wars” argued whether AC or DC current was the preferred method of providing electrical power to America. Edison conducted a lengthy and well-hyped campaign to demonstrate the dangers of AC current, as well as a coincident campaign demonstrating the effectiveness of using electricity for capital punishment. As part of his campaign he electrocuted animals, including an elephant, which he conveniently filmed using his relatively new motion picture technology.

New York authorized execution by electrocution in 1888, using AC current (after extensive lobbying by Edison), and Kemmler simply was the first in line by schedule. Westinghouse opposed the use of his AC technology for the purpose, as well as Edison’s unrelenting propagandizing, but eventually the scheduled execution took place in Auburn Prison, Auburn, New York. Rather than humane and quick, it was gruesome and protracted. After a first jolt and a pronouncement of death by the attending physician, Kemmler displayed signs of life. Additional charges of electricity were ordered, leading to several minutes of evident torture experienced by the victim.

Kemmler’s body smoked and charred, convulsed and changed color, filling the execution chamber with the smells of burnt meat. Several witnesses were forced to turn away, sickened by the display. The skin split and bled, hair smoldered, and approximately eight minutes transpired before the physician again announced Kemmler was dead. George Westinghouse later commented that an axe would have been a more efficient method of execution. A New York Times report of the execution headlined “Far Worse Than Hanging”. According to the report one witness, Sheriff O. A. Jenkins of Buffalo, New York, came to the opinion that execution by electrocution, “…would never do”.

5. William Williams, hanging, 1906

As of the end of 2022, William Willams, a convicted murderer, is the last person executed for his crimes by the State of Minnesota. Williams was convicted of killing a teenage boy of whom he was enamored, as well as the boy’s mother, who died in a separate shooting a week later. Williams admitted the murder of the boy, attempted to escape punishment via the insanity defense, and after conviction was sentenced to death by hanging.

Once again, the professional estimation of the hangman failed to address the realities of the execution. The hangman used a rope which was too long for its intended purpose, and Williams dropped to the floor, his neck intact, and with insufficient tension to stimulate strangulation. While Williams awaited, the hangman was forced to solicit assistance for him to complete his duty to the state.

Three or four strong men (depending on sources) were forced to seize the rope and haul upwards, lifting Williams off the floor and strangling him. No reporters were allowed to attend and record the execution, but over thirty witnesses observed Williams’ involuntary struggles against strangulation, which lasted over 14 minutes. Williams was executed in 1906. The state has not conducted an execution since.  In 1911, Minnesota abolished the death penalty.

4. Ginggaew Lorsoongnem, firing squad, 1979

Ginggaew Lorsoongnem was one of six Thai criminals who conspired to kidnap and murder a child. For the purposes of readability the other five shall remain nameless here. Convicted in a trial which was sensationalized in the press and media, Lorsoongnem was sentenced to death in early 1979. In Thailand at the time the preferred method of execution was through a firing squad.

Unbeknownst to her executioners, the convicted criminal was afflicted with situs inversus, meaning her heart, as well as other major organs, was on the opposite side from normal, as in a mirror image. At her execution, Lorsoongnem was struck by at least ten rounds, and since she was unconscious declared dead. Her body was then transferred to the morgue, located nearby in the same compound as that of the execution, where it was deposited to await autopsy.

Authorities, who were busily preparing additional executions, were startled by her screams from the morgue, and her reported attempts to stand once she regained consciousness. She was removed to the execution chamber, and a second firing squad pumped additional rounds into her body. According to Thai reports, the second firing squad completed the execution satisfactorily, at least as far as Thai justice was concerned.

3. John Louis Evans, electrocution, 1983

John Louis Evans’s execution in 1983 was notable at the time as being the first in Alabama since the United States Supreme Court allowed the states to return to the death penalty in Gregg v. Georgia (1976). As such it drew considerable media attention in the United States and internationally. Evans was a career criminal, having committed more than two dozen armed robberies, numerous kidnappings, and the murder of a pawn shop owner during the course of a robbery. Evans attempted to plead guilty to the latter, which was rejected by prosecutors, since acceptance of the plea would prevent them from seeking the death penalty.

Scheduled for execution on April 22, 1983, Evans was electrocuted in an electric chair which had been built in the 1920s. and last used in 1965. His execution, witnessed by members of the press, his attorneys, and others, took more than 24 minutes after the first shock was applied. Eventually three were required, and his body smoldered, smoked, and produced sparks while it convulsed with each application of current.

“A large puff of grayish smoke and sparks poured out from under the hood that covered Mr. Evans’ face”, according to a witness, who attended the execution. “An overwhelming stench of burnt flesh and clothing began pervading the witness room”. He was describing the results of the first of the three shocks required before Evans was declared dead, after medical examinations following the first two revealed him to still be alive.

2. Stephen McCoy, lethal injection, 1989

In 1982 Texas became the first American state to use lethal injection, the intravenous administration of a “cocktail” of drugs, as the preferred means of legal execution. Eventually 32 states and the federal government adopted lethal injection, under the belief the method was more humane than hanging, gas, electrocution, or firing squad. In 1989 Stephen McCoy was sentenced to death in Texas. McCoy was a serial killer who, along with a partner named James Paster, was guilty of at least three murders, including the rape of two of the victims. Paster too was executed for his crimes.

For reasons which seem inexplicable to some, lethal injections are typically carried out by medical professionals, who create sanitary fields around the injection site. Although it seems as if post-injection infection is of minor concern to the victim, adherence to procedures is strictly followed. So are the amounts of the drugs administered as well as the rate of administration. In the case of McCoy, rather than simply slipping into a drug-induced coma followed by death, the victim reacted strongly and adversely to the injections.

McCoy’s reaction to the drugs included a physical spasm in which his body arched violently, causing at least one witness to faint. He also audibly gasped for air. Texas officials later admitted the execution had been less than ideal in its completion. According to Jim Mattox, then Attorney General for the State of Texas, “The drugs might have been administered in a heavier dose…” McCoy’s execution was one of the earliest examples of the pitfalls of relying on lethal injection as a humane method of dispatching those sentenced to death.

1. Joseph Lewis Clark, lethal injection, 2006

Joseph Lewis Clark was sentenced to die for the murder of a gas station attendant during a robbery which netted Clark all of $60. Arrested in January, 1964, Clark confessed to the murder (as well as another) after a failed suicide attempt while in custody. Tried and convicted, following the lengthy appeals process, his execution took place in Lucasville, Ohio on May 2, 2006. His execution took place before witnesses, but for an extended period their view was obscured by a curtain. They heard, rather than saw, what transpired in the execution chamber.

What they heard were repeated groans and protests that it wasn’t working, including verbal complaints uttered by the condemned man. When the curtain was opened, the witnesses observed the condemned man raise his head several times and look about him. The procedure took more than 90 minutes, delayed because the medical technicians involved failed to find a vein capable of bearing the intravenous injection. One vein selected collapsed more than a half hour into the execution. One witness reported the victim protesting, “It don’t work”, several times throughout the procedure.

A post-mortem on Clark’s body revealed 19 puncture wounds administered during the search for a suitable injection site. Clark’s execution eventually succeeded, though protests based on what witnesses reported led to increased debate over lethal injections as a means of state executions. Over the centuries humanity has sought a means to humanely dispatch those deemed to be the least humane in society. Despite persistence in trying, it appears the perfect answer to the difficulty continues to be elusive.