State empties death row of 12 inmates
over 6 weeks
Associated Press Oct 24, 08 2:25 PM CDT
(AP)
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A dozen condemned inmates in Texas's "death watch" cells are being executed at a scheduled rate of two a week through November. The executions relieve a logjam created when the US Supreme Court effectively halted lethal injections while deciding whether the method was unconstitutionally inhumane. It ruled the method constitutional, and executions resumed.
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World Court had ordered hearing
Houston Chronicle Aug 6, 08 2:33 CDT
(Newser)
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A Mexican national convicted of raping and murdering two girls was executed in Texas yesterday in defiance of an international court. Attorneys for Jose Medellin, 33, had argued that authorities violated an international treaty when Medellin was denied access to Mexican consular officials after his arrest, reports the Houston Chronicle . The United Nations world court ordered a hearing on the issue 4 years ago, but Texas officials refused.
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He argues in lawsuit that executioners won't find a vein
The Columbus Dispatch Aug 5, 08 7:00 CDT
(Newser)
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A convicted killer and rapist on Ohio's death row is arguing in a lawsuit that he's too fat to be humanely executed. Lawyers for Richard Wade Cooey claim the 5'-7", 275-pound inmate is morbidly obese, and veins suitable for lethal injection would be difficult to find, reports the Columbus Post Dispatch.
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Orders state to change executions
New York Times Jun 10, 08 10:53 PM CDT
(Newser)
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An Ohio judge has ordered authorities to stop using a lethal three-drug cocktail for executions because it may cause excruciating pain. Instead, the judge ruled in favor of a single lethal dose of a barbiturate used in animal euthanasia, the New York Times reports. State officials are reviewing the decision—which bucks the trend of recent cases in the wake of a Supreme Court ruling that upheld similar executions.
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ANALYSIS
5-4 votes that characterized last
term grow scarce
New York Times May 23, 08 2:35 PM CDT
(Newser)
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The Supreme Court divisions expected after Samuel Alito replaced Sandra Day O’Connor materialized last term but have since disappeared in a tide of consensus. Only one of 35 cases this term has been decided 5 to 4. Linda Greenhouse of the New York Times looks at a once-predictable panel that seems to be emphasizing concessions over confrontations.
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updated
It's the nation's first since Supreme Court ruled on the issue
Atlanta Journal-Constitution May 6, 08 7:29 PM CDT
(Newser)
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Georgia executed William Earl Lynd by lethal injection tonight, the first such execution in the nation since the Supreme Court cleared the way for them to resume, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports. Lynd kidnapped and murdered his girlfriend in 1988. The death penalty had been on hold across the US for eight months before the Supreme Court ruled that lethal injection did not amount to cruel and unusual punishment.
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William Earl Lynd denied clemency for two murders
Atlanta Journal-Constitution May 5, 08 5:47 PM CDT
(Newser)
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A Georgia killer is slated to be the first US inmate to die by lethal injection since the Supreme Court ruled the method constitutional last month, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports. The state denied William Earl Lynd clemency today and plans to execute him tomorrow for killing his girlfriend and another woman 20 years ago.
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With Supreme Court's blessing, officials move to play catch-up
New York Times May 3, 08 9:03 CDT
(Newser)
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States are getting ready to catch up on executions now that a Supreme Court moratorium has been lifted, the New York Times reports. At least 14 executions have been scheduled in six states in coming months. "The Supreme Court has essentially blessed their way of doing things," a legal expert said. "They’re back from vacation and ready to go to work."
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Court passes on death-row cases following ruling upholding lethal injection
New York Times Apr 21, 08 2:49 PM CDT
(Newser)
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The Supreme Court today dismissed appeals from 11 death-row prisoners in seven states, including three who received last-minute stays of execution last year; the result was no surprise 1 week after the landmark ruling upholding lethal injection in Kentucky, the New York Times reports. The earlier opinion held that the execution method does not amount to cruel and unusual punishment.
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Pro-death states will waste no time; lawsuits likely in others
New York Times Apr 17, 08 10:42 CDT
(Newser)
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Executions will resume in the United States, thanks to the Supreme Court’s ruling on lethal injection yesterday, but so will lawsuits, the New York Times reports. By condoning methods “substantially similar” to Kentucky’s, the court has invited more challenges. “We have left the states with nothing resembling a bright-line rule,” said Clarence Thomas. “Today’s decision is sure to engender more litigation.”
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Ruling clears way for other states to resume capital punishment
Reuters Apr 16, 08 10:01 CDT
(Newser)
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By a vote of 7-2, the Supreme Court upheld today the use of lethal injection by a three-drug cocktail. Two death row inmates in Kentucky had charged that the method violated their Eighth Amendment right to be spared cruel and unusual punishment. The mix of drugs has been used in most US executions over the past three decades, Reuters reports.
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World leader doesn't report thousands more, Amnesty says
BBC Apr 15, 08 8:26 CDT
(Newser)
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China's 470 executions in 2007 make it the world's leader, according to Amnesty International's annual report on the worldwide state of capital punishment. But even that number is likely low, the group says, with the real number probably in the thousands. "China gets the 'gold medal' for global executions," Amnesty's British director told the BBC.
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Justices cite low chance of painful death, lack of better option
Los Angeles Times Jan 7, 08 2:49 PM CST
(Newser)
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As the Supreme Court opened its hearing on lethal injection today, justices expressed serious doubts that the method amounts to cruel and unusual punishment, the LA Times reports. Most of the panel, including Chief Justice John Roberts, seemed unconvinced that the three-chemical cocktail results in a painful death, or that a better option exists. A national moratorium is in place while the high court weighs the issue.
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As high court weighs lethal injection, actual methods are shrouded in secrecy
Los Angeles Times Jan 7, 08 8:56 CST
(Newser)
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With a landmark case coming before the Supreme Court today on lethal injection, the Los Angeles Times examines the unusual secrecy that shrouds the execution method. Defense lawyers who argue that it inflicts unnecessary pain are routinely blocked from information about executioners and the drugs injected. States say such information needs to be kept secret for the safety of prison personnel.