Wednesday, June 28, 2006

Judge Orders Missouri Executions Halted

From STLtoday:
A federal judge halted all executions in Missouri on Monday after finding that the state's execution procedure - largely in the hands of a dyslexic doctor - could cause "unconstitutional pain and suffering."

U.S. Judge Fernando Gaitan Jr. gave the Missouri Department of Corrections until July 15 to come up with a new lethal injection procedure. A department spokesman initially declined to comment, saying officials had not yet had time to study the ruling.

The order to halt executions came as Gaitan amended his ruling in the case of a condemned Kansas City man who faces execution for murdering a 15-year-old girl in 1989. The inmate, Michael A. Taylor, appealed his sentence, arguing that Missouri's method of execution could force him to suffer unconstitutionally cruel pain and suffering.

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