California executions, A California state appeals court has rejected the state's latest attempt at rewriting the rules concerning lethal injection thus continuing the moratorium on executions within the state. The 1st District Court of Appeal ruled that state prison officials broke administrative rules when writing new regulations regarding the use of the lethal injection, according to the San Jose Mercury News.
California has not conducted an execution since 2006 and the ruling by the appellate court ensures that that streak will continue for at least a little while longer. California has over 700 inmates on Death Row waiting for the case to eventually get settled, reports the Los Angeles Times.
The case revolves around the decision of prison officials to stick with a three drug method of lethal injection while not properly informing the public of other possible options, including a one drug method that was recommended by the state's own expert. The three drug method came under scrutiny because one of the drugs used, pancuronium bromide, is capable of both creating excruciating pain and hiding that pain by paralyzing the inmate, according to the Los Angeles Times.
In the decision Justice J. Anthony Kline explained the court's decision.
"A hearing is 'on the merits' and 'meaningful' only if the interested public has timely received all available information that is relevant to the proposed regulations, accurate, and as complete as reasonably possible," Kline wrote.
In order to eventually be able to resume executions the state appears to be finally looking into a single drug method of lethal injection.
"We are evaluating today's decision," Deborah Hoffman, spokeswoman for the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation told the San Francisco Chronicle. "In the meantime, at the governor's direction, CDCR is continuing to develop proposed regulations for a single-drug protocol in order to ensure that California's laws on capital punishment are upheld."
The state could appeal the ruling to the California supreme court but has not yet announced plans to do so.
Friday, May 31, 2013
California executions
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