Federal judge says Oklahoma death penalty suit can proceed
3 years, 4 months ago

Federal judge says Oklahoma death penalty suit can proceed

Associated Press  

OKLAHOMA CITY — A federal judge in Oklahoma City ruled Wednesday a lawsuit challenging the state’s lethal injection protocols can proceed to trial, making it likely Oklahoma’s de facto moratorium on executions will extend into a seventh year. U.S. District Judge Stephen Friot agreed in his order to consider at trial whether Oklahoma’s current three-drug protocol risks subjecting inmates to unconstitutional pain and suffering. Friot’s ruling applies to 26 of the 32 Oklahoma death row inmates who agreed to provide the court with an alternative method of execution, including the use of different drug combinations or firing squad. The judge indicated a trial could be held early next year, making it likely Oklahoma’s current moratorium on execution will extend into a seventh year.

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History of this topic

Oklahoma to carry out 25th and final execution in U.S. this year
4 days, 12 hours ago

Oklahoma to carry out 25th and final execution in U.S. this year

Raw Story  

An Oklahoma man who killed a 10-year-old girl is to be put to death on Thursday in the 25th and final execution in the United States this year. Kevin Ray Underwood, who turns 45 on Thursday, is scheduled to die by lethal injection at 10:00 am Central Time at the Oklahoma State Penitentiary in McAlester. Underwood, a grocery store clerk, …

Oklahoma executes a man for a 1992 killing despite board recommending his life be spared
2 months, 3 weeks ago

Oklahoma executes a man for a 1992 killing despite board recommending his life be spared

Associated Press  

McALESTER, Okla. — Oklahoma executed a man Thursday for his role in the 1992 fatal shooting of a convenience store owner after the governor again rejected a recommendation from the state’s parole board to spare a death row inmate’s life. Emmanuel Littlejohn, 52, received a lethal injection at the Oklahoma State Penitentiary and was declared dead at 10:17 a.m. “A …

Supreme Court will consider overturning Oklahoma death row prisoner Glossip’s murder conviction
11 months ago

Supreme Court will consider overturning Oklahoma death row prisoner Glossip’s murder conviction

Associated Press  

WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court on Monday said it will hear an appeal from Oklahoma death row inmate Richard Glossip, who has steadfastly maintained his innocence and averted multiple attempts by the state to execute him. “Public confidence in the death penalty requires the highest standard of reliability, so it is appropriate that the U.S. Supreme Court will review this …

Alabama court says state can make second attempt to execute inmate whose lethal injection failed
11 months, 1 week ago

Alabama court says state can make second attempt to execute inmate whose lethal injection failed

Associated Press  

MONTGOMERY, Ala. — The Alabama Supreme Court on Friday rejected the appeal of a death row inmate who is scheduled to be the first person put to death with nitrogen gas and had argued that he shouldn’t face execution after a previous attempt at a lethal injection failed. Justices without dissent rejected arguments that a second attempt to execute Kenneth …

Editorial: Bureaucracy of death may snag condemned Oklahoma man, guilty or not
1 year, 7 months ago

Editorial: Bureaucracy of death may snag condemned Oklahoma man, guilty or not

LA Times  

The Oklahoma Pardon and Parole Board voted 2 to 2 to grant clemency to Richard Glossip on April 26. Several prominent Oklahoma Republican lawmakers have likewise argued for Glossip, horrified that their state is close to putting to death a man who may be innocent. Opinion Editorial: Death penalty’s retreat is excruciatingly slow Florida jurors and Oregon’s governor were unlikely …

Oklahoma court upholds Richard Glossip’s murder conviction
1 year, 8 months ago

Oklahoma court upholds Richard Glossip’s murder conviction

Associated Press  

OKLAHOMA CITY — An Oklahoma appeals court on Thursday upheld the murder conviction of death row inmate Richard Glossip, paving the way for Glossip to be executed on May 18, despite the state attorney general’s concerns about some testimony and evidence. The Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals’ ruling said his case “has been thoroughly investigated and reviewed,” with Glossip given …

GOP Oklahoma lawmakers join call for death penalty pause
1 year, 10 months ago

GOP Oklahoma lawmakers join call for death penalty pause

Associated Press  

OKLAHOMA CITY — Three Oklahoma Republican lawmakers joined a former corrections official on Wednesday to call for a moratorium on the death penalty amid growing concerns about the state’s brisk pace of lethal injections. Rep. Kevin McDugle said he supports the death penalty but believes Oklahoma’s next death row inmate scheduled to die, Richard Glossip, is actually innocent. Opposition to …

Oklahoma appeals court agrees to slow pace of executions
1 year, 10 months ago

Oklahoma appeals court agrees to slow pace of executions

Associated Press  

OKLAHOMA CITY — Oklahoma’s Court of Criminal Appeals on Tuesday agreed to slow the pace of the state’s upcoming executions at the request of the new attorney general, spacing them at least 60 days apart. The court issued an order setting execution dates for the next seven death row inmates scheduled to die by lethal injection, beginning with Richard Glossip …

New Oklahoma AG seeks to slow pace of lethal injections
1 year, 11 months ago

New Oklahoma AG seeks to slow pace of lethal injections

Associated Press  

OKLAHOMA CITY — Oklahoma’s current schedule of executing a death row inmate roughly every 30 days is placing too much of a burden on prison staff and should be slowed down, the state’s new attorney general wrote in a motion filed Wednesday with the Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals. Attorney General Gentner Drummond, who witnessed last week’s execution of Scott …

Oklahoma panel votes to reject clemency for death row inmate
2 years ago

Oklahoma panel votes to reject clemency for death row inmate

Associated Press  

OKLAHOMA CITY — A man convicted in the shotgun slayings of an elderly couple in eastern Oklahoma in 2003 and sentenced to die should not be spared from the death sentence, a state board decided Wednesday. The five-member Pardon and Parole Board voted 3-2 to reject clemency for Scott Eizember, 61, who is scheduled to receive a lethal injection on …

Oklahoma executes man for 1993 killing of 3-year-old boy
2 years, 1 month ago

Oklahoma executes man for 1993 killing of 3-year-old boy

Associated Press  

McALESTER, Okla. — Oklahoma executed a man Thursday for the torture slaying of his girlfriend’s 3-year-old son in 1993, the third of four scheduled executions in the U.S. over a two-day stretch. “He hadn’t said that in 30 years.” Prosecutors from the Oklahoma attorney general’s office had described the boy’s killing as torture when they wrote to the state’s Pardon …

Execution of Alabama death row prisoner is called off, state official says, citing time constraints from late-night court battle
2 years, 1 month ago

Execution of Alabama death row prisoner is called off, state official says, citing time constraints from late-night court battle

CNN  

CNN — Alabama corrections officials Thursday cited time constraints caused by a late-night court battle in halting the scheduled execution of a death row prisoner – the second time in as many months the state failed to carry out an execution before the expiration of a death warrant. Smith’s execution was called off at about 11:20 p.m. “due to the …

Oklahoma court denies new hearing for death row inmate
2 years, 1 month ago

Oklahoma court denies new hearing for death row inmate

Associated Press  

OKLAHOMA CITY — An Oklahoma appeals court on Thursday denied death row inmate Richard Glossip’s request for a new evidentiary hearing that his attorneys suggest would prove his innocence in the 1997 beating death of Glossip’s boss at an Oklahoma City motel. The court also cast doubt on Glossip’s theory that his co-defendant, Justin Sneed, acted alone or with his …

Oklahoma sues federal prisons for inmate it wants to execute
2 years, 1 month ago

Oklahoma sues federal prisons for inmate it wants to execute

Associated Press  

OKLAHOMA CITY — Oklahoma is suing the Federal Bureau of Prisons for custody of a state death row inmate whom the bureau is refusing to hand over, with the state saying the man’s scheduled execution cannot be carried out in December if he’s not returned soon. A federal lawsuit was filed Tuesday by state Attorney General John O’Connor urging that …

Judge dismisses lawsuit over upcoming lethal injection
2 years, 2 months ago

Judge dismisses lawsuit over upcoming lethal injection

Associated Press  

MONTGOMERY, Ala — A federal judge dismissed an inmate’s claim seeking to block his upcoming execution in Alabama because of reported problems at a recent lethal injection. But U.S. District Judge R. Austin Huffaker Jr. also warned Alabama’s prison commissioner to strictly follow established protocol when officials attempt to put Smith to death next month. Smith’s attorneys pointed to a …

Oklahoma panel rejects clemency for man in baby’s killing
2 years, 2 months ago

Oklahoma panel rejects clemency for man in baby’s killing

Associated Press  

OKLAHOMA CITY — Oklahoma’s Pardon and Parole Board voted 4-1 Tuesday to deny clemency for a man sentenced to die for killing his 9-month-old daughter in 2002, moving him a step closer to his scheduled lethal injection next month. Attorneys for the state and members of the victim’s family told the board that Cole’s symptoms of mental illness are exaggerated …

Oklahoma, with a history of botched lethal injections, prepares to start executing a man a month
2 years, 4 months ago

Oklahoma, with a history of botched lethal injections, prepares to start executing a man a month

CNN  

CNN — Oklahoma will soon begin executing death row inmates at a pace of about one man per month, with plans to put to death 25 prisoners over the next two years despite cries by critics and experts who point not only to outstanding questions of the mental fitness or possible innocence of some but also the state’s recent history …

Tennessee execution pause through 2022 could last longer
2 years, 6 months ago

Tennessee execution pause through 2022 could last longer

Associated Press  

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — After Tennessee Gov. Many of the problems surfaced as part of challenges of Tennessee’s execution process by two death row inmates in federal court. Those cases are on hold until the investigation ordered by Lee concludes — but in the meantime, the state attorney general’s office acknowledged in a May 6 court filing that there may be …

Oklahoma official seeks execution dates for 25 inmates
2 years, 6 months ago

Oklahoma official seeks execution dates for 25 inmates

Associated Press  

OKLAHOMA CITY — Oklahoma’s attorney general has asked the state’s highest appeals court to set execution dates for 25 death row inmates following a federal judge’s rejection of their challenge to the state’s lethal injection method. In 25 similar filings with the Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals on Friday, Attorney General John O’Connor wrote that the federal court’s stays of …

Judge rules Oklahoma’s lethal injection method is constitutional following a legal challenge from dozens of death row prisoners
2 years, 6 months ago

Judge rules Oklahoma’s lethal injection method is constitutional following a legal challenge from dozens of death row prisoners

CNN  

CNN — Four days after a federal court ruled against death row inmates arguing Oklahoma’s lethal injection protocol is cruel and unusual, the state’s attorney general asked for more than two dozen executions to be scheduled. The lawsuit, brought on behalf of 28 death row prisoners, named officials with multiple Oklahoma corrections agencies and claimed the injection method causes “constitutionally …

Judge rules Oklahoma’s lethal injection method is constitutional following a legal challenge from dozens of death row prisoners
2 years, 6 months ago

Judge rules Oklahoma’s lethal injection method is constitutional following a legal challenge from dozens of death row prisoners

CNN  

CNN — Oklahoma’s use of a three-drug lethal injection method is constitutional, a federal judge ruled Monday following a lawsuit from nearly 30 people on death row challenging the protocol. The suit, brought on behalf of 28 death row prisoners, named officials with multiple Oklahoma corrections agencies and claimed the state’s lethal injection method violates the Eighth Amendment because it …

Federal judge OKs Oklahoma’s lethal injection method
2 years, 6 months ago

Federal judge OKs Oklahoma’s lethal injection method

Associated Press  

OKLAHOMA CITY — A federal judge in Oklahoma on Monday ruled the state’s three-drug lethal injection method is constitutional, paving the way for the state to request execution dates for more than two dozen death row inmates who were plaintiffs in the case. Judge Stephen Friot’s ruling followed a six-day federal trial earlier this year in which attorneys for 28 …

A federal judge rules Oklahoma's lethal injection method is constitutional
2 years, 6 months ago

A federal judge rules Oklahoma's lethal injection method is constitutional

NPR  

A federal judge rules Oklahoma's lethal injection method is constitutional Enlarge this image toggle caption Sue Ogrocki/AP Sue Ogrocki/AP A federal judge in Oklahoma on Monday ruled the state's three-drug lethal injection method is constitutional, paving the way for the state to request execution dates for more than two dozen death row inmates who were plaintiffs in the case. Judge …

Attorneys want moratorium, probe after execution halted
2 years, 7 months ago

Attorneys want moratorium, probe after execution halted

Associated Press  

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — After an undisclosed “oversight” forced Tennessee to call off the execution of Oscar Smith an hour before he was to die last week, Smith’s attorneys on Thursday asked for a moratorium on executions and a review of the state’s execution protocols. Bill Lee issued a brief statement on April 21 at 5:42 p.m. saying that “due to …

Oklahoma attorneys say execution method is constitutional
2 years, 9 months ago

Oklahoma attorneys say execution method is constitutional

Associated Press  

OKLAHOMA CITY — The three-drug lethal injection method Oklahoma uses is constitutional and is unlikely to lead to inmates experiencing much pain before they die, Oklahoma’s solicitor general told a federal judge on Monday. Mithun Mansinghani told U.S. District Judge Stephen Friot that the four lethal injections the state has carried out since October “are definitive proof that the protocol …

Federal judge opens hearing on Oklahoma’s lethal injection
2 years, 9 months ago

Federal judge opens hearing on Oklahoma’s lethal injection

Associated Press  

OKLAHOMA CITY — Oklahoma’s push to resume executions, which includes four death row prisoners put to death since October, faced the scrutiny of a federal judge in Oklahoma City on Monday in a case brought by more than two dozen death row inmates who are challenging Oklahoma’s lethal injection protocols. On Monday, the plaintiffs called Dr. Craig Stephens, an Oklahoma …

Texas law firm agrees to review Oklahoma death penalty case
2 years, 10 months ago

Texas law firm agrees to review Oklahoma death penalty case

Associated Press  

OKLAHOMA CITY — A partner with a Texas law firm said Tuesday at least 20 attorneys are prepared to review the case of an Oklahoma death row inmate who has long maintained his innocence in the 1997 killing of a motel owner in Oklahoma City. Stan Perry, an attorney with Houston-based ReedSmith, said his firm already has begun reviewing the …

Oklahoma Executes Man Days Before A Trial On Whether Its Lethal Injection Method Is Legal
2 years, 10 months ago

Oklahoma Executes Man Days Before A Trial On Whether Its Lethal Injection Method Is Legal

Huff Post  

The state of Oklahoma executed Gilbert Postelle, 35, on Thursday. Gilbert Postelle's clemency application The state of Oklahoma on Thursday executed Gilbert Postelle, 35, a man with an IQ that approaches an intellectual disability who suffered from neglect and drug addiction as a child. Postelle is the fourth person killed by the state in recent months amid a lawsuit over …

Oklahoma death row inmate who requested firing squad executed by lethal injection
2 years, 10 months ago

Oklahoma death row inmate who requested firing squad executed by lethal injection

CNN  

CNN — An Oklahoma death row inmate who had requested execution by firing squad was executed by lethal injection on Thursday, according to the state Department of Corrections. Grant and another death row inmate, Gilbert Postelle, had asked a federal judge to intervene and allow their executions by firing squad rather than lethal injection. Grant was sentenced to death for …

Appeals court paves the way for 2 more Oklahoma executions
2 years, 10 months ago

Appeals court paves the way for 2 more Oklahoma executions

Associated Press  

OKLAHOMA CITY — A federal appeals court rejected a request from two Oklahoma death row inmates to temporarily halt their upcoming lethal injections. The two have argued that the state’s current three-drug lethal injection protocol that uses midazolam as the first drug will expose them to a constitutionally unacceptable risk of severe pain. The judge also determined that Grant and …

Oklahoma death row inmates seek firing squad as alternative
2 years, 11 months ago

Oklahoma death row inmates seek firing squad as alternative

Associated Press  

OKLAHOMA CITY — Two Oklahoma death row inmates facing executions in the coming months offered firing squad as a less problematic alternative to the state’s three-drug lethal injection, one of their attorneys told a federal judge on Monday. The two inmates — Donald Grant and Gilbert Postelle — want U.S. District Judge Stephen Friot to grant them a temporary injunction …

Federal judge grants stay of execution to Oklahoma inmate
2 years, 11 months ago

Federal judge grants stay of execution to Oklahoma inmate

Associated Press  

OKLAHOMA CITY — A federal judge in Oklahoma has granted a stay of execution for a death row inmate who was scheduled to receive a lethal injection in March. The order reinstates Coddington as a plaintiff in a case with other death row inmates who are challenging Oklahoma’s three-drug lethal injection protocol. Firing squad is one of several authorized execution …

Oklahoma executes man for 1985 slaying of schoolteacher
3 years ago

Oklahoma executes man for 1985 slaying of schoolteacher

Associated Press  

McALESTER, Okla. — Oklahoma executed a man Thursday for the 1985 shooting death of an Oklahoma City-area schoolteacher after courts rejected his claim that the state’s lethal injection method would result in unconstitutional pain and suffering. He was declared dead at 10:16 a.m. Oklahoma Attorney General John O’Connor said in statement that the execution “was carried out with zero complications.” …

Oklahoma judge stays Jan. 6 execution for competency hearing
3 years ago

Oklahoma judge stays Jan. 6 execution for competency hearing

Associated Press  

OKLAHOMA CITY — A state court judge in Oklahoma granted a temporary stay of execution on Monday for a death row inmate convicted of killing a security guard during a 2004 bank robbery in Tulsa. Lay was scheduled to be executed on Jan. 6, but after a hearing before Mills last week, the judge determined there was “good reason” to …

Oklahoma governor denies clemency for death row inmate
3 years ago

Oklahoma governor denies clemency for death row inmate

Associated Press  

OKLAHOMA CITY — Oklahoma Gov. The Republican governor’s decision clears the way for Bigler Stouffer II, 79, to receive a lethal injection at 10 a.m. Thursday at the Oklahoma State Penitentiary in McAlester. He said at his parole board hearing last month that Ivens was shot as the two men fought over a gun at Ivens’ home, and that Reaves …

Judge denies Oklahoma death row inmate’s request for stay
3 years, 1 month ago

Judge denies Oklahoma death row inmate’s request for stay

Associated Press  

OKLAHOMA CITY — A federal judge on Tuesday denied a death row inmate’s request for a stay of execution, paving the way for him to receive a lethal injection next month. Bigler Stouffer II, 79, and his attorneys argued that the state’s current three-drug lethal injection protocol poses the risk of subjecting him to unconstitutional pain and suffering. Stouffer also …

Oklahoma board cites execution flaws, recommends clemency
3 years, 1 month ago

Oklahoma board cites execution flaws, recommends clemency

Associated Press  

OKLAHOMA CITY — The Oklahoma Pardon and Parole Board voted Wednesday to recommend clemency for a death row inmate after questioning the state’s execution methods. We’ve had individuals on the table suffering for 20 and 30 minutes,” said board member Larry Morris, who voted for the clemency recommendation. Stouffer was convicted in 2003 and sentenced to die for the shooting …

Federal court rejects Oklahoma death row inmates appeal
3 years, 1 month ago

Federal court rejects Oklahoma death row inmates appeal

Associated Press  

OKLAHOMA CITY — A federal appeals court has rejected an appeal by four Oklahoma inmates to stay their executions scheduled over the next three months, including a planned lethal injection next week that has drawn international attention. Jen Moreno, an attorney for the four death row inmates, called the ruling “inexplicable.” “We’re kind of in the process of figuring out …

John Grant: Oklahoma executes first man in six years
3 years, 1 month ago

John Grant: Oklahoma executes first man in six years

The Independent  

The latest headlines from our reporters across the US sent straight to your inbox each weekday Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. “Today, the Department of Corrections carried out the …

Oklahoma executes inmate who dies vomiting and convulsing
3 years, 1 month ago

Oklahoma executes inmate who dies vomiting and convulsing

Associated Press  

McALESTER, Okla. — Oklahoma administered the death penalty Thursday on a man who convulsed and vomited as he was executed for the 1998 slaying of a prison cafeteria worker, ending a six-year execution moratorium brought on by concerns over its execution methods, John Marion Grant, 60, who was strapped to a gurney inside the execution chamber, began convulsing and vomiting …

Timeline of events involving capital punishment in Oklahoma
3 years, 1 month ago

Timeline of events involving capital punishment in Oklahoma

Associated Press  

OKLAHOMA CITY — Oklahoma conducted 112 executions from 1976 to October 2015, when the state imposed a moratorium following three consecutive flawed executions or attempted executions. The U.S. Supreme Court says later it will consider whether Oklahoma can use midazolam during executions, but it doesn’t disrupt Warner’s rescheduled execution. — June 29, 2015: A divided U.S. Supreme Court upholds Oklahoma’s …

Oklahoma set to resume lethal injections after 6-year pause
3 years, 1 month ago

Oklahoma set to resume lethal injections after 6-year pause

Al Jazeera  

A 60-year-old Oklahoma man who stabbed a prison cafeteria worker to death in 1998 is scheduled to receive a lethal injection on Thursday in the state’s first attempt to administer the death penalty since a series of flawed executions more than six years ago. The state moved forward with John Marion Grant’s lethal injection after the US Supreme Court, in …

Federal court delays Oklahoma executions until 2022, just weeks before Julius Jones was set to die
3 years, 1 month ago

Federal court delays Oklahoma executions until 2022, just weeks before Julius Jones was set to die

The Independent  

The latest headlines from our reporters across the US sent straight to your inbox each weekday Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy A federal appeals court …

Federal appeals court temporarily halts Oklahoma executions
3 years, 1 month ago

Federal appeals court temporarily halts Oklahoma executions

Associated Press  

OKLAHOMA CITY — A federal appeals court granted stays of execution on Wednesday for two Oklahoma inmates who were scheduled to receive lethal injections in the coming weeks. The panel wrote, “We find nothing in the relevant case law that specifically requires a prisoner to designate a method of execution to be used in his case by ‘checking a box’ …

Judge says Oklahoma can proceed with 5 lethal injections
3 years, 1 month ago

Judge says Oklahoma can proceed with 5 lethal injections

Associated Press  

OKLAHOMA CITY — A federal judge in Oklahoma ruled Monday the state can move forward with scheduled lethal injections for five death row inmates, including Julius Jones, whose case has drawn international attention and who is scheduled to die on Nov. 28. Judge Stephen Friot denied a motion for a preliminary injunction sought by the five inmates, paving the way …

Oklahoma parole board rejects clemency for death row inmate
3 years, 2 months ago

Oklahoma parole board rejects clemency for death row inmate

Associated Press  

OKLAHOMA CITY — Oklahoma’s Pardon and Parole Board narrowly rejected clemency Tuesday for a death row inmate convicted of killing a prison cafeteria worker in 1998, paving the way for the state’s first execution in more than six years. “We are asking the board today to come with open minds and open hearts to hear the whole story that should …

Oklahoma sets 7 executions in 6 months; 1st since 2015
3 years, 3 months ago

Oklahoma sets 7 executions in 6 months; 1st since 2015

Associated Press  

Oklahoma scheduled seven executions Monday in what would be the first lethal injections for the state since putting them on hold six years ago following a series of mishaps. Among the men scheduled to die is Julius Darius Jones, even though the Oklahoma Pardon and Parole Board just last week recommended that his death sentence be commuted to life in …

Analysis: Mississippi reveals it has lethal injection drugs
3 years, 4 months ago

Analysis: Mississippi reveals it has lethal injection drugs

Associated Press  

— Mississippi has not executed a death row inmate since June 2012, and no executions are currently scheduled. intended to sufficiently anesthetize the prisoner so that he is both unconscious and insensate when the executioner injects the second and third drugs.” In papers filed July 29 in federal court in Jackson, the inmates’ attorneys said they had demanded information from …

New rule could allow gas, firing squads for US executions
4 years ago

New rule could allow gas, firing squads for US executions

Associated Press  

WASHINGTON — The Justice Department is quietly amending its execution protocols, no longer requiring federal death sentences to be carried out by lethal injection and clearing the way to use other methods like firing squads and poison gas. The amended rule, published Friday in the Federal Register, allows the U.S. government to conduct executions by lethal injection or use “any …

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