"Disclose drug source," is the editorial published by the Scranton Times-Tribune.
Executions in Pennsylvania are carried out in the name of the commonwealth, the people of Pennsylvania. The state government has a duty to the people to disclose details about the irrevocable punishment it intends to administer.
Unfortunately, U.S. District Judge Yvette Kane, of the Middle District of Pennsylvania, Harrisburg, sealed the name of the compounding pharmacy for a feeble reason: According to the state, the company might not provide the drugs if its name is revealed.
That’s the company’s problem, not a reason to keep Pennsylvanians in the dark about an execution to be conducted in their name.
"Crack open the secrecy surrounding execution drugs," isMitchel Olszak's column in the New Castle News.
The commonwealth claims the provider of the drugs wants to remain secret and if identified, the firm will halt delivery of its product.
Perhaps you don’t care where these drugs come from and whether or not they are safe. Convicted killers aren’t a particularly sympathetic lot, so those views are understandable.
But government secrecy has a habit of spreading. Citizens should always demand openness and accountability from government as a matter of fundamental policy.
Do you really want a system where government information is concealed based on little more than a whim on the part of a private business? If that is the standard, be prepared for all sorts of new secrecy to come down the pike.
"Lawsuits, drug scarcity preventing Pa. executions," is AP's summary of recent developments, written by Mark Scolforo. It's via the Observer-Reporter.
Gov. Tom Corbett’s decision this week to indefinitely delay the execution of a convicted murderer illustrated some of the practical and legal challenges the state faces these days in carrying out the death penalty.
And:
Corbett, a former prosecutor, signed 35 execution warrants, but he’s trailing badly in the polls as he seeks re-election. The Democratic candidate, Tom Wolf, said he won’t sign the warrants and will issue temporary reprieves while the state studies the issue of wrongful convictions.
Earlier coverage from Pennsylvania begins at the link. With no drugs to carry out executions, Pennsylvania has a de facto moratorium on executions.
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