Lethal Injection Faces Scrutiny In Tennessee

"Lethal Injection Faces Scrutiny In Tennessee"

A local group that defends death row inmates hopes the landscape concerning lethal injection may soon change. It comes after legal action Friday in two of the nation's largest states. Tennessee has executed two death row inmates since 1960. Both Robert Glen Coe, in 2000, and Sedley Alley this past June died by lethal injection.

Now that execution process has been suspended in Florida by Governor Jeb Bush pending a commissions review. It comes after an execution Wednesday that took twice as long as expected and required a rare second dose of lethal chemicals.

The suspension in Florida comes the same day as a California federal judge ruled lethal injection unconstitutional in that state.

Kelley Henry is with the federal public defenders office which is one of the groups that defend Tennessee death row inmates. "The chemical process that is used in Tennessee is virtually identical to the chemical processes used in California and Florida," she says. "With Florida state officials now studying lethal injection and suspending such execution there will likely be calls for similar action here at the Tennessee state capitol."

That means lawmakers or Governor Phil Bredesen may feel compelled to review the lethal injectionprocess here.

"That's something the leader of a state has to look at and act with responsibility," Henry says.

Mr. Bredesen has expressed confidence in the lethal injection process in the past, but so did Florida's Governor until this past Wednesday.