U.S. Supreme Court halts Bucklew execution

According to the Associated Press, the United States Supreme Court has halted the execution of death row inmate, Russell Bucklew.

The justices said Wednesday a lower federal court needs to take another look at the case of the convicted killer.

Bucklew’s attorneys said the combination of the secrecy surrounding the execution drug and Bucklew’s medical condition affecting his blood vessels makes for an unacceptably high risk that he would experience extreme pain if injected with a lethal dose of pentobarbital.

An order by the U.S. Supreme Court states, “The application for stay of execution of sentence of death presented to Justice Alito and by him referred to the Court is treated as an application for stay pending appeal in the EighthCircuit. The application is granted pending the disposition of petitioner’s appeal. We leave for further consideration in the lower courts whether an evidentiary hearing is necessary. “

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