MissouriNet reports, "Schaefer asks Nixon to ensure death penalty can be carried out," by Mike Lear. Here's an extended excerpt:
The State of Missouri only has enough drugs to execute three more people, and a state lawmaker has asked the Governor to act so that the death penalty can continue to be carried out.
The current protocol for executions in Missouri, as established by the Department of Corrections, calls for the use of a lethal dose of the anesthetic propofol. The Missouri Society of Anethesiologists says propofol is one of the most commonly used anesthetics in the U.S. and if it is used for even one execution in the United States, the European Union might block export of that drug to this country. Approximately 85 percent of propofol used in the U.S. comes out of E.U. countries, and domestic manufacturers are not believed to be able to make up that shortfall.
Missouri is scheduled to carry out the execution of Allen Nicklasson on October 23 and of Joseph Franklin on November 20, both using propofol.
Columbia Senator and attorney general candidate Kurt Schaefer says as the use of propofol to carry out executions is being called more and more into question, Governor Jay Nixon must act. He has written a letter asking the Governor to propose a budget including money for the construction of a new gas chamber, or to propose a change to statute allowing for a third method of execution. Lethal gas and lethal injection are currently the only two forms of execution Missouri statute allows for.
The current gas chamber at the decommissioned Missouri State Penitentiary was last used for a gas execution in 1965 and Schaefer says it could not be used now, due to its condition and location in a populated area.
The Governor and the legislature both have a say in creating the budget for a coming fiscal year, but Schaefer believes for the money to build a new one to be added to the budget, the Governor would have to propose it.
Earlier coverage from Missouri begins at the link.
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