A blistering independent report on Tennessee’s lethal injection system has turned up years of communications showing a state determined to push forward with executing death row inmates despite major issues
Executions Tennessee
These text messages emerged among hundreds of documents released this week as part of a blistering independent report on Tennessee's lethal injection system. The communications span years, depicting a state determined to push forward with executions despite roadblocks to obtaining the drugs and questions about whether revamped procedures would keep inmates from feeling pain as they are put to death.
Earlier this year, Republican Gov. Bill Lee paused all executions after confirming the state failed to ensure its lethal injection drugs were properly tested before the scheduled execution of Oscar Smith. Lee halted Smith’s execution an hour before he was supposed to die. — An unidentified state official, sending a text message hours before the Smith execution was paused, warned: “We are preserving everything so don't throw anything away or alter any stuff.”
Reliance on midazolam has faced growing criticism after its use with other chemicals in executions that went wrong in other states. Following the review, Lee said he plans leadership changes in the department and will hire a permanent commissioner in January to replace the interim one. The new leaders, he said, will rework the lethal injection protocol in cooperation with the governor’s and attorney general’s offices. They'll also revise training specifics.
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