Lynd Execution the First Since Lethal Injection Ruling
William Earl Lynd was put to death in Georgia last night, the first execution since the U.S. Supreme Court upheld Kentucky’s widely used lethal injection procedure.
The U.S. Supreme Court turned down a last-minute request for a stay last night, the Washington Post reports. Justice John Paul Stevens did not write separately from the court’s stay denial in Lynd’s case. The justice had attracted widespread attention when he stated his personal opposition to the death penalty in the Kentucky case despite voting to uphold the procedure.
Lynd was executed for shooting and killing his girlfriend in December 1988. The Georgia Supreme Court also denied Lynd’s request for a stay of execution, ABAJournal.com reported yesterday. Lynd’s lawyer wanted the stay so courts could examine new forensic evidence.
