Oklahoma City bomber Timothy McVeigh may not die next Wednesday after all, thanks to errors by the FBI. That should come as no surprise; capital cases always progress in fits and starts, and we probably ought to be suspicious when conviction and execution seem too easy. We need to be very certain we’re doing the right thing.

The important question this time, though, is who might be driving the process. Many of those who were injured in the bombing, and the families of those who were killed, have been looking forward to the execution. Retribution has been six years coming, and they’ve been preparing themselves with this date in mind. Only when McVeigh is dead, they say, will they be able to move forward with their lives. They are understandably irritated at the delay, and some of them blame the federal government.

On the other hand, some analysts say, this is one official action for which the justification must be beyond challenge. To execute McVeigh and then be forced to confront evidence that might cast doubt on either his guilt or suggest that he did not act alone would turn a murderer into a martyr and our criminal justice system into a travesty. Attorney General John Ashcroft is right; the existence of documents not formerly available to defense attorneys certainly provides adequate justification for delaying the execution.

But McVeigh has openly admitted responsibility for the bombing, and he has expressed his wish to die rather than be imprisoned for the rest of his life. That wish alone should make us question the wisdom of executing him; the primary goal of our justice system is not to give Tim McVeigh whatever he wants, and provoking his victims into supporting his desire is a sick, sick thing to do.

Likewise, he should not be able to yank victims’ chains by pointing to the FBI’s foul-up as evidence that no one can ever be sure whether justice is being served. The rest of us, including the FBI, must go through the proper motions. McVeigh alone could, if he chose, say, "I really did kill 168 people; the rest is just details."

McVeigh’s attorneys cannot have an easy job. They need to ensure that his conviction has been reached fairly. John Ashcroft and all the officers of the court must have the same goal. That process protects everyone, not just McVeigh.