Justice Kennedy Focuses on Lethal Injection Specifics
Updated: Justice Anthony M. Kennedy, the possible swing vote in a lethal injection case before the U.S. Supreme Court, focused on the specifics of Kentucky’s procedure in oral arguments today.
Kennedy questioned the lawyers about the mechanics of the procedure and the training and experience of the executioners, SCOTUSblog reports. The issue of the legal standard to be used to decide such cases received little attention.
Two liberal justices, Stephen G. Breyer and David H. Souter, questioned whether the case should even be before the Supreme Court. They suggested sending the issue back to the state courts for a determination whether there are better alternatives to the state’s three-drug cocktail, the blog says.
Opponents say the second chemical in the cocktail paralyzes the inmate and prevents involuntary muscle contractions, but it also prevents him from crying out if the first chemical does not work to prevent pain.
Justice Antonin Scalia opposed a remand, saying that would delay a decision and continue the nationwide moratorium on executions. He said states have been careful to adopt procedures that seek to keep the inmate from feeling pain during the execution, and that occasional mistakes don’t make their methods unconstitutional, the Associated Press reports.
“There is no painless requirement” in the Constitution, Scalia said.
Updated at 11:45 AM to include information from the Associated Press.
