WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - The U.S. Supreme Court has denied the state of Alabama's appeal to execute death row inmate Jeffery Lee by nitrogen hypoxia.
The Supreme Court issued an order Thursday refusing to overturn a federal court's ruling that nitrogen suffocation is unconstitutional, which means the convicted murderer's execution will be delayed.
The State of Alabama appealed the ruling by two lower courts previously against the use of nitrogen gas in executions, finding the protocol violates the Eighth Amendment's prohibition on cruel and unusual punishment.
The Supreme Court ruling, with dissent note by three judges, blocks Alabama's use of nitrogen gas for execution.
Nitrogen gas has been used in eight executions in the United States since 2024?-?all but one of them in Alabama. The state has the highest per capital capital sentencing rate in the United States.
Nitrogen gas executions involve putting a mask onto an inmate, who is forced to breathe pure nitrogen through a gas mask, leading to suffocation.
Alabama Governor Kay Ivy expressed disappointment with the decision. 'Jeffery Lee was convicted and sentenced to death for the December 1998 murder-robbery of Jimmy Ellis and Elaine Thompson in Dallas County. While I am disappointed the Supreme Court did not allow the state to proceed with Lee's chosen method of execution, I remain committed to ensuring that justice is ultimately served for his victims,' he said in a statement.
Attorney General Steve Marshall also expressed discontent with the decision, calling it a miscarriage of justice: 'Tonight's ruling is a miscarriage of justice, not for us, but for Jimmy Ellis and Elaine Thompson, who Jeffery Lee brutally and senselessly murdered and left on the floor of their place of business. Tonight I am also keeping their families in mind, many of whom were prepared to witness the final act of justice be served'.
He added that the State will never stop seeking justice for Jimmy and Elaine. 'The State is prepared to do whatever is necessary to see Mr. Lee's lawful sentence carried out.'
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