Dusty Ray Spencer, 74, was executed by lethal injection in Florida on Thursday, becoming the state's oldest inmate put to death. He was convicted of the 1992 stabbing murder of his wife, Karen Spencer. Another 74-year-old inmate is scheduled for execution next month.
Alabama is seeking to execute Jeffery Lee by lethal injection after his nitrogen execution was blocked. The state's Attorney General's office asked the Alabama Supreme Court to authorize a death warrant, arguing the previous ruling only barred nitrogen hypoxia, not execution itself. Lee's legal team has not yet commented.
Tennessee death row inmate Tony Carruthers' execution was postponed after officials failed to find a suitable vein for lethal injection. Governor Bill Lee granted a one-year reprieve.
Tennessee authorities have postponed the execution of inmate Tony Carruthers for at least one year after a lethal injection attempt failed due to difficulties finding a vein for the catheter. Carruthers was convicted of triple murder in 1994.
Tennessee is set to execute Tony Carruthers on Thursday. His execution faces challenges over expired lethal injection drugs, DNA evidence, and his mental competency, with his attorneys arguing his self-representation at trial and alleged delusions prevented a fair process.
Attorneys for Tony Carruthers, set for execution Thursday, are concerned Tennessee may use expired lethal injection drugs, citing the state's secrecy and past issues. Public defender Amy Harwell warned expired drugs could cause a 'slow, lingering death'.
Leroy Dean McGill, convicted of a 2002 murder involving gasoline and fire, is scheduled for execution by lethal injection in Arizona on Wednesday. He doused Charles Perez and Nova Banta with gasoline and set them ablaze. Perez died from his injuries.
The Justice Department announced Friday it will adopt firing squads as a permitted federal execution method and reauthorize single-drug lethal injections with pentobarbital. The moves reverse Biden administration policies and ramp up capital punishment, with the Trump administration having already authorized seeking death sentences against 44 defendants. Only three defendants remain on federal death row after President Biden commuted 37 sentences to life imprisonment.
The Trump Justice Department said on Friday it was seeking to expand the use of the death penalty in federal capital cases and add the firing squad, electrocution and gas to lethal injection as methods of execution. “The prior administration failed in its duty to protect the American people by refusing to pursue and carry out the ultimate punishment against the most dangerous criminals, including terrorists, child murderers, and cop killers,” acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said. Under US...
