Prison Executions - Right or Wrong?

Hey guys!

Okay, so I was talking to my friend the other day, and we somehow got onto the topic of prison executions. For anyone out there who doesn't know what a prison execution is, it's when a criminal is given a lethal injection by the prison guards (a long time ago they were put in an electric chair) and they die. And I don't mean that they the guards go around giving these criminals injections illegally. They're set up by the prison and totally legal.
Anyway, she thinks that they are very wrong and I think that they're okay. So, we decided to have a debate about it on our blogs (hers is www.andieblogs.blogspot.com so check it out if you haven't already).
I think that prison executions are okay because the point of the execution is not to punish the criminal, but to prevent that criminal from commiting any more crimes. If a guy comes into court for a DUI, the judge isn't going to put him on death row just because he might do it again. Sure, the person will lose their license and serve some jail time for a while, because in jail they can't drive drunk, and without a license they can't drive drunk, so the problem is solved. It's the same thing with a rape or assault. But let's say a person comes into court for raping, torturing, and killing several people. Then it would make sense for the judge to say "Okay, this person is obviously very dangerous and if he stays alive, the lives of many people are at risk. Even if he's in jail, the guards are at risk and so are the inmates.) So it makes perfect sense for the person to be executed. Yes, I know that the guards have guns, but even so, inmates do kill guards. More often, inmates are killed in gang fights and prison riots. Also, I think that it is VERY unfair to say that the guards are putting themselves at risk, so if they're killed, they knew the risks. This is true... to an extent. Without prison guards, we would live in a world full of murder, rape, violence, and other horrible crimes. They put themselves at risk so that we can live in a peaceful world. Therefore, I don't think that anyone has the right to judge them or say that if they're killed on the job, then it's partially their fault.
My friend also argued that the lethal injection is inhumane. If you look in the dictionary, the definition of inhumane is this: "Not humane; lacking humanity, compassion, kindness, etc...". So these criminals go around murdering people and causing endless pain and suffering to the victims and their families, yet an injection that causes absolutely no pain or suffering is considered inhumane?!
I just think that these people SHOULD be executed for what they've done. I mean, they killed people, most likely very painfully, ending their life and destroying the lives of their loved ones, yet they don't deserve to see the person that caused all this pain and suffering die painlessly? They don't deserve to know that this horrible person will never harm anyone ever again? I mean, jail is much more inhumane than a painless needle, so why not take a jab (pun intended) at that?

Prison Executions - Right or Wrog