Althought the death penalty has been around for centuries, the ethical dilemma surrounding the practice is still being questioned.

Last week, California authorities were forced to postpone indefinitely the execution of death row inmate Michael Morales because they could not find medical doctors who would administer a lethal injection.

The difficult search was spurred by a judge's order that licensed professionals, namely a doctor or nurse, to administer the three-part injection.

Morales' lawyer objected to California's method of lethal injection because he said a prisoner could feel pain from the chemicals if not sedated properly, and that more broadly, this violated his constitutional rights.

Although passing legislation that requires doctors to administer sedatives and lethal injections for the purpose of executing a convicted inmate sounds like an easy fix to a complicated problem, that solution only creates more issues.

Doctors have taken an oath to preserve life at almost any cost, and many believe it is against their ethics code to take a life, no matter what the circumstance.

Regardless of their personal feelings on the death penalty, medical professionals, by the very nature of their profession, shouldn't be involved in a practice that destroy life.

For that reason, it is hardly surprising that the state of California is having a difficult time finding licensed doctors to lethally inject death row inmates.

That can only mean another solution must be found.

Officials in California, and states with similar practices, should explore alternative methods of execution.

If a federal judge who reviewed objections to the lethal injection method agreed the process is questionable, then state officials should begin looking at other options.

The issue here is not whether the death penalty is right or wrong -- that debate is far more complex.

In California, the challenge is to find a method of execution that does not cause pain to the inmate and does not require a person to perform a procedure that directly conflicts with the values to which he or she has dedicated his or her life.