US Supreme Court Agrees to Address Constitutionality of Kentucky Lethal Injection Protocol

The U.S. Supreme Court today agreed to hear the Kentucky case of Baze v. Rees, which challenges the constitutionality of Kentucky's standard 3-drug lethal injection protocol.  This has potentially huge ramifications.  Although the Supreme Court ruled last term that death row inmates have the right to challenge the constitutionality of methods of execution, this will be the first occasion for the court to actually consider whether lethal injection as practiced by most states violates the 8th Amendment ban on "cruel and unusual punishment."  Today's grant of certiorari in the Baze case could thus conceivably put a halt to lethal injections across the U.S. pending a ruling in the case sometime next year; and whatever that ruling is will likely determine the outcome of the Ohio challenge to lethal injection in the Cooey v. Taft (now Strickland) case.  However, it's also possible - maybe likely - that different states will respond with varying degrees of deference to the ongoing proceedings in Baze, with some trying to proceed with executions based on lack of timeliness or other procedural inadequacies of inmates' appeals.  Scotusblog notes the cert. grant in Baze here, with links to case documents.  SL&P has this post, entitled "SCOTUS to review lethal injection protocols with Kentucky case," providing some perspective on the significance of the court's ruling granting cert.  Reuters has this concise report, entitled "Supreme Court to rule on lethal injection executions."  Pete Yost has this AP coverage, entitled "Court to Consider Lethal Injection."  Bloomberg News has this coverage.  Some alternate AP coverage here.

SL&P excerpt:
This is huge news which could (and probably should) lead to a de facto moratorium on all lethal injection executions nationwide until the Supreme Court issues a ruling (which might not come until June 2008). ...

Reuters excerpt:
The U.S. Supreme Court said on Tuesday it would decide whether the commonly used lethal injection method of execution violated the constitutional ban on cruel and unusual punishment.

The nation's highest court said it would decide in its upcoming term an appeal by two death row inmates from Kentucky arguing that the three-chemical cocktail used in lethal injections inflicted unnecessary pain and suffering. ...

AP excerpt:
The Supreme Court on Tuesday agreed to consider the constitutionality of lethal injections in a case that could affect the way inmates are executed around the country.

The high court will hear a challenge from two inmates on death row in Kentucky -- Ralph Baze and Thomas Clyde Bowling Jr. -- who sued Kentucky in 2004, claiming lethal injection amounts to cruel and unusual punishment.

Baze has been scheduled for execution Tuesday night, but the Kentucky Supreme Court halted the proceedings earlier this month.

The court has previously made it easier for death row inmates to contest the lethal injections used across the country for executions.

But until Tuesday, the justices had never agreed to consider the fundamental question of whether the mix of drugs used in Kentucky and elsewhere violates the Eighth Amendment's ban on cruel and unusual punishment. ...

Alternate AP excerpt:
The Supreme Court has agreed to rule on whether lethal injection amounts to cruel and unusual punishment.

The high court will hear the case of 2 death row inmates from Kentucky in determining the constitutionality of that form of capital punishment.

1 of the men, convicted killer Ralph Baze, was scheduled to be executed tonight, but the Kentucky Supreme court halted it earlier this month.

The defense attorney for the inmates says this will be 1 of the "most important" death penalty cases in decades. ...

Update:  Expanded AP coverage here.  More Scotusblog legal analysis here.

• Meanwhile, despite today's ruling, Texas appears ready to proceed with its 26th execution of the year tonight.  Michael Graczyk has this AP article on the impending execution of Michael Richard.

Excerpt:
...Lawyers for Richard went to the U.S. Supreme Court asking the lethal injection be halted. The execution will go on as planned despite a Supreme Court decision Tuesday to consider the constitutionality of lethal injection, Gov. Rick Perry's office said. ...