Executions in Alabama Are Paused , After Third Botched Lethal Injection.
AL Governor Kay Ivey called for a “top-to-bottom” review of the state's system of capital punishment after a
third uncompleted execution occurred on Nov. 17.
Ivey deflected blame from prison and law enforcement officials, stating that “legal tactics and criminals
hijacking the system are at play here.”.
For the sake of the victims and their families, we’ve got to get this right, Kay Ivey, AL Governor, via NBC News.
The AL Corrections Commissioner stated that he is “confident that we can get this [review] done right.”.
Everything is on the table — from our legal strategy in dealing with last minute appeals, to how we train and prepare, , John Hamm, AL Corrections Commissioner,
via NBC News.
... to the order and timing of events on execution day,
to the personnel and
equipment involved, John Hamm, AL Corrections Commissioner,
via NBC News.
The capital punishment system in AL is the only system in the country that has had to halt an execution in progress since 2017. .
The director of the Death Penalty Information Center in AL says the state's Department of Corrections has a long history of "incompetence.".
The Alabama Department of Corrections has a history of denying and bending the truth about its execution failures, Robert Dunham, Death Penalty Information Center,
via NBC News.
AL defense attorneys say that the state's failures harm all those involved, including Correction officials and the families.
Gov. Ivey mentions only the victims, but these botched executions have been ordeals for the men on the gurney, their families, friends, ministers,
and attorneys, , Bernard Harcourt, AL Defense Attorney,
via NBC News.
... and all the men and
women working at the prison and involved in these
botched attempts. , Bernard Harcourt, AL Defense Attorney,
via NBC News.
The trauma of these executions extends widely to everyone that they touch, Bernard Harcourt, AL Defense Attorney,
via NBC News