That's the subtitle of an editorial published in today's Oklahoman, "State right to seek delay in pending Oklahoma executions."
THE state attorney general’s office did the right thing in requesting that Oklahoma hold off on any executions. The governor and head of the Department of Corrections are to be commended for agreeing.
And:
The need to get the next execution absolutely right is great. Lockett’s execution attracted considerable attention beforehand in part because the state used a three-drug mixture that had never been used in this country. The way the execution wound up being carried out has placed a greater spotlight on the state.
The Oklahoman also report, "Inmates' lawyers ask court to find state officials in contempt of court," by Graham Lee Brewer.
Lawyers representing 21 death row inmates have filed motions to hold the state’s commissioner of public safety and chief medical examiner in contempt of court for not providing subpoenaed documents.
The inmates filed a lawsuit against the state in June, asking a federal court to bar the state from executing them in the same manner as Clayton Derrell Lockett, whose April lethal injection lasted 43 minutes. In the lawsuit, the inmates raise concerns the procedure will violate their rights against cruel and unusual punishment.
Filed on Wednesday after a hearing between the state and the inmates’ attorneys, the motions are against Commissioner of Public Safety Michael Thompson and Chief Medical Examiner Eric Pfeifer, alleging the state officials failed to provide documents related to Lockett’s execution that were requested in September.
Earlier coverage from Oklahoma begins at the link.
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