US EditionA lawsuit by inmates is challenging Tennessee's plans to resume executions. Here's how
- Nine Tennessee death row inmates filed a lawsuit on March 14 in state court challenging the state's plans to resume executions using a new lethal injection protocol, with the first execution scheduled for May.
- The lawsuit follows a 2022 execution that was abruptly called off and a subsequent investigation that revealed numerous missteps in several executions, leading to a pause ordered by GOP Governor Bill Lee.
- Tennessee is transitioning from a three-drug series to a single-drug protocol using pentobarbital, a barbiturate that fifteen states and the federal government have used in executions, though the state has not publicly disclosed how it intends to obtain it.
- The lawsuit argues that executions using pentobarbital could cause unnecessary pain and suffering, violating the Eighth Amendment, and that the new protocol lacks specifics and makes it harder to hold officials accountable, despite recommendations for improvement from the governor and an independent investigator.
- The resumption of executions in May is contingent on the outcome of the federal court lawsuit, with inmates' attorneys arguing against the new protocol and citing historical views that the framers of the Constitution would have considered fatal poisoning a barbarous act, while the state attorney general's office reviews the lawsuit and two plaintiff inmates have a 90-day agreement to assess the protocol.
17 Articles
17 Articles
A lawsuit by inmates is challenging Tennessee’s plans to resume executions. Here’s how
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Nine Tennessee death row inmates are suing the state over its push for a new round of lethal injections after an execution was abruptly called off in 2022 and a follow-up investigation found scores of missteps…
A lawsuit by inmates is challenging Tennessee's plans to resume executions. Here's how
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Nine Tennessee death row inmates are suing the state over its push for a new round of lethal injections after an execution was abruptly called off in 2022 and a follow-up investigation found scores of missteps in several executions. The lawsuit was filed March 14 in state court, nearly three months after officials announced a new lethal injection protocol using the single drug pentobarbital. The Tennessee Supreme Court re…
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