My position on the death penalty is no secret. I represented Michael Ross in 1987 and voiced my opposition to the death penalty as an associate justice of the Connecticut Supreme Court in numerous cases going back to 1995, long before that position became popular. But I am not writing now to voice my opposition to the federal government's execution of persons on death row, rather to express my disdain for the sense of urgency with which federal executions are being held during this lame-duck period. As was observed by three dissenting justices in State v. Cobb, 234 Conn 735, 783 (1995): "Death is irrevocable. It is the ultimate penalty that society can impose and, once imposed, cannot be reversed."