On November 7, 1988, Campbell petitioned the U.S. Supreme Court to review his case. The Supreme Court denied his petition, but that did not end the appeals. There was now debate over whether hanging, fearing decapitation due to Campbell's obesity, was cruel and unusual punishment, and thus unconstitutional. This time, it was Washington State appealing to the Supreme Court in 1993, because the state wanted the case concluded, instead of dragging on for years. Campbell's repeated appeals showed that he would prefer to spend the rest of his life behind bars, rather than face execution.