Former state attorneys general ask Supreme Court to ban Oklahoma execution drug cocktail

Jurist

More than a dozen former state attorneys general on Tuesday asked [press release] the US Supreme Court to rule Oklahoma's use of the three-drug execution cocktail unconstitutional. The attorneys general argue that this type of execution violates the constitutional rights of three death row inmates scheduled for execution. In an amicus brief [text, PDF] organized by the Constitution Project [advocacy website], the former state officials argued that Oklahoma's use of midazolam, a sedation drug, as a part of its lethal injection protocol does not properly induce unconsciousness. Officials claim that this may result in an extremely painful death, which would be a violation of the constitutional ban on cruel and unusual punishment. The officials claim that there are other alternatives that can be used instead of the three-drug cocktail. On January 28, the court blocked Oklahoma from using midazolam until it can decide the case of the inmates, Richard Glossip, John Grant and Benjamin Cole Sr.