Judge stays killers execution over lethal-injectio

[SoulTrainOz]

9 days before Don Williams Davis scheduled execution for the 1990 killing of a Rogers woman, a federal judge granted a stay on Monday, citing concerns that Arkansas lethal injection process is cruel.

"The Court finds that Davis has shown that he is personally under a threat of irreparable harm," U. S. District Judge Susan Webber Wright said in a written order. "If Davis remains or becomes conscious during the execution, he will suffer intense pain that will never be rectified.... If a stay is granted and Davis's allegations prove true, he and others will be spared subjection to an unconstitutional execution procedure.... If, on the other hand, a stay is granted and Daviss allegations are without merit, the State can carry out Daviss execution without the specter that the [Arkansas Department of Corrections ] protocol carries an unreasonable risk of inflicting unnecessary pain."

On May 4, 7 days before Gov. Mike Huckabee scheduled Davis's execution date, Davis intervened in a federal lawsuit filed May 1 by another deathrow inmate, Terrick Terrell Nooner.

The lawsuit, filed by attorney Julie Brain of the federal public defenders office, contends that inmates who are put to death in Arkansas under the states lethal injection protocol may be subjected to cruel and unusual punishment, in violation of the Eighth Amendment.

In 1992, Davis, now 43, was sentenced to death after being convicted of capital murder for shooting and killing Jane Martha Daniel, 62, while burglarizing her home Oct. 12, 1990. Her husband found her body in the basement of their home when he returned from a business trip.

Brain says that according to a board-certified anesthesiologist, Arkansas' 3-pronged injection process fails to ensure that the 1st injection actually renders the inmate unconscious to the point that he will not experience intense pain and agony after the administration of the second and third drugs, which cause paralysis and stop the heart, respectively.

The lawsuit says that the statements of witnesses to various Arkansas executions indicate that perhaps the paralysiscausing drug merely prevents the condemned inmate from outwardly indicating the painful effects of the drugs.

The 2nd drug causes difficulty breathing, while the third drug, potassium chloride, burns intensely as it travels through the veins to the heart, according to the suit.

The plaintiffs' expert, anesthesiologist Dr. Mark J. S. Heath of New York City, contends that the state's protocol fails to comply with medical standards for inducing and maintaining anesthesia, and "creates an unacceptable risk that condemned inmates will be conscious for the duration of the execution procedure," Wright's order notes.

While the state has defended its execution procedures, noting that Arkansas uses the same chemicals as other states that have withstood constitutional challenges, Wright said she plans to hold an evidentiary hearing on the lawsuits claims.

"Crime victims and the general public have an important interest in the timely enforcement of criminal sentences," her order said.

"However, failure to consider Davis's allegations would ignore the equally important public interest in the humane and constitutional application of the States lethal injection statute."

She said she will try to schedule a hearing quickly, and that the
execution is stayed "until further notice."

Nooner's execution date has not been scheduled.

(source: Northwest Arkansas & Rick Halperin)

[marion]

Inmate Wants Execution to be Videotaped

KARK News
( Air Date: 7/1/2006 )

The death row inmate whose execution is tentatively scheduled for Wednesday, is making an unusual request of the governor.
Don Davis had former Clinton political advisor and
now anti-death penalty advocate, Betsey Wright,
write a letter to Mike Huckabee.
In the letter, Davis requests that media witnesses be allowed to use tape recorders and cameras during his execution.
He also wants witnesses to see the initial stages of an execution such as the escorting of the inmate into the chamber and the strapping onto the gurney.
District Judge Susan Webber Wright issued a stay of execution on Monday.
The Attorney General`s office has now appealled directly to the United States Supreme Court.

[marion]

State appeals Ark. judge's order staying execution

By JILL ZEMAN
Friday, June 30, 2006

LITTLE ROCK - A federal appeals court Friday declined to give Arkansas a quick hearing on its request to execute Don Davis next week, so the state attorney general's office asked a U.S. Supreme Court justice to intervene.

A federal judge Monday granted Davis a stay so he could pursue claims that the way Arkansas administers lethal injections constitutes cruel and unusual punishment. Before Davis' execution was stayed, he was to have died Wednesday at the Cummins Unit prison near Varner for the 1990 execution-style killing of a Rogers woman.

The 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals set a hearing date for July 7 -after the scheduled execution- and the state asked Supreme Court Associate Justice Samuel Alito to step in, said Matt DeCample, a spokesman for the attorney general's office. The state is asking Alito to dissolve the stay issued by U.S. District Judge Susan Webber Wright.

Davis, 53, was sentenced to death for the 1990 killing of Jane Daniels of Rogers.

In an appeal filed Friday with the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, the attorney general's office calls Wright's decision "impermissibly broad" and asked that the case be dismissed and the stay be lifted.

"The result is that the District Court's order dismisses any interest the State has in the timely and meaningful enforcement of its judgment as well as the significant interest Davis has in filing this lawsuit and seeking an injunction merely for the purposes of delay," said the appeal, written by Assistant Attorney General Joseph Svoboda.

Davis joined a lawsuit filed by another death row inmate, Terrick Nooner. The suit claims that Arkansas' use of lethal injections may put a condemned inmate at risk for cruel and unusual punishment.

In court filings, the state has said that Davis joined the suit late -just months before his scheduled execution- and that Davis was simply trying to avoid the execution.

"Once again, it appears to have been the late timing of this lawsuit involving a valid sentence of death and unilaterally (Davis and Nooner's) mere allegations and speculations that drove the District Court to grant the stay," the appeal said.

The Arkansas Department of Corrections will continue to prepare for Davis' execution as planned, said Wendy Kelley, deputy director for health and programs for the department.

"We continue with the same procedure we would do if the stay had not been granted in the first place," Kelley said Friday. "Until we're notified from the court, we'll continue getting ready for it."

In her order, Wright said an evidentiary hearing needs to be held on Davis' claims that the lethal injection protocol is unconstitutional. She stayed the execution until further notice.

"The Court finds that Davis has shown that he is personally under a threat of irreparable harm," Wright wrote in her order. "If Davis remains or becomes conscious during the execution, he will suffer intense pain that will never be rectified."

In a filing last week, the state defended its means of executing condemned prisoners.

[soulja]

I don't agree with the death penalty by far... but to allow blind americans to see exactly what it is the ask for ... I understand his want.

[falcon66]

people seem to think that an execution is a clean and sterile procedure. But with all the things that can go wrong in an execution (i.e. veins collapsing, taking 30 or more minutes to even find a vein, the drugs themselves), I think that if these things were allowed during one, peole would know just how barbaric an execution is.

[SoulTrainOz]

State appeals Ark. judge's order staying execution

In Little Rock, a federal appeals court Friday declined to give Arkansas a quick hearing on its request to execute Don Davis next week, so the state attorney general's office asked a U.S. Supreme Court justice to intervene.

A federal judge Monday granted Davis a stay so he could pursue claims that the way Arkansas administers lethal injections constitutes cruel and unusual punishment. Before Davis' execution was stayed, he was to have died Wednesday at the Cummins Unit prison near Varner for the 1990 execution-style killing of a Rogers woman.

The 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals set a hearing date for July 7 - after the scheduled execution - and the state asked Supreme Court Associate Justice Samuel Alito to step in, said Matt DeCample, a spokesman for the attorney general's office. The state is asking Alito to dissolve the stay issued by U.S. District Judge Susan Webber Wright.

Davis, 53, was sentenced to death for the 1990 killing of Jane Daniels of Rogers.

In an appeal filed Friday with the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, the attorney general's office calls Wright's decision "impermissibly broad" and asked that the case be dismissed and the stay be lifted.

"The result is that the District Court's order dismisses any interest the State has in the timely and meaningful enforcement of its judgment as well as the significant interest Davis has in filing this lawsuit and seeking an injunction merely for the purposes of delay," said the appeal, written by Assistant Attorney General Joseph Svoboda.

Davis joined a lawsuit filed by another death row inmate, Terrick Nooner.

The suit claims that Arkansas' use of lethal injections may put a
condemned inmate at risk for cruel and unusual punishment.

In court filings, the state has said that Davis joined the suit late -
just months before his scheduled execution - and that Davis was simply trying to avoid the execution.

"Once again, it appears to have been the late timing of this lawsuit involving a valid sentence of death and unilaterally (Davis and Nooner's) mere allegations and speculations that drove the District Court to grant the stay," the appeal said.

The Arkansas Department of Corrections will continue to prepare for Davis' execution as planned, said Wendy Kelley, deputy director for health and programs for the department.

"We continue with the same procedure we would do if the stay had not been granted in the first place," Kelley said Friday. "Until we're notified from the court, we'll continue getting ready for it."

In her order, Wright said an evidentiary hearing needs to be held on Davis' claims that the lethal injection protocol is unconstitutional. She stayed the execution until further notice.

"The Court finds that Davis has shown that he is personally under a threat of irreparable harm," Wright wrote in her order. "If Davis remains or becomes conscious during the execution, he will suffer intense pain that will never be rectified."

In a filing last week, the state defended its means of executing condemned prisoners.

(source: Associated Press)

[SoulTrainOz]

In Little Rock, attorneys for a condemned killer who had been scheduled to die Wednesday told a U.S. Supreme Court justice Monday that temporarily delaying his execution would cause less harm than executing him in a way that inflicts "excruciating pain and torture."

Don Davis asked the U.S. Supreme Court on Monday not to intervene after a federal judge last week granted Davis a stay so he could pursue claims that the way Arkansas administers lethal injections constitutes cruel and unusual punishment.

The Arkansas attorney general's office on Friday asked Justice Samuel Alito to step into the case and lift U.S. District Judge Susan Webber Wright's stay of execution.

Before Davis' execution was stayed, he was to have died Wednesday at the Cummins Unit prison near Varner for the 1990 execution-style killing of a Rogers woman.

Davis joined a lawsuit filed by another death row inmate, Terrick Nooner. The suit claims that Arkansas' use of lethal injections may put a condemned inmate at risk for cruel and unusual punishment.

In court filings, the state has said that Davis joined the suit late -
just months before his scheduled execution - and that Davis was simply trying to avoid the execution.

Davis' response, written by attorney Alvin Schay, argued that the delay was of the state's own making because it waited until Friday to file an appeal with the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.

The 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals set a hearing date for Friday - after the scheduled execution of Davis.

"The tactic of filing at such a late date threatened to deprive Mr. Davis of any meaningful opportunity to respond to the motion, and the circuit's decision to allow him such an opportunity was the only equitable course of action available," the motion said.

Davis, 43, was sentenced to death for the 1990 killing of Jane Daniels of Rogers.

The motion filed Monday said the state has as much of an interest in aking sure its criminal sentences are in line with the Constitution as it does in carrying out those sentences.

"Executing a prisoner in a manner that causes a substantial and
unnecessary risk or inflicting excruciating pain and torture offends this interest," the filing said. "In contrast, temporarily delaying an execution for the period of time necessary to ensure that the proposed procedure is humane and constitutional is a lesser injury."

In an e-mail sent by his friend and death penalty opponent Betsey Wright, Davis asked Gov. Mike Huckabee to make executions more public in the hope that this might deter others from committing violent crimes.

In the e-mail, Davis asked that witnesses be allowed to see the condemned prisoner walk to the execution chamber, and prison staff strapping the inmate to the gurney and inserting needles and tubes into the prisoner for lethal injection.

Davis also suggested that news reporters witnessing the execution be allowed to use tape recorders and cameras, but said he does not want executions to take on "a circus-like atmosphere."

Huckabee said through a spokeswoman on Sunday that Davis' execution is "kind compared to the brutal way he murdered the victim."

(source: Associated Press)

[SoulTrainOz]

A lawyer for condemned killer who had been scheduled to die Wednesday argues in a filing with the US Supreme Court Monday that a stay of execution should remain in place while the state's method of execution is challenged.

Don Davis was convicted in 1990 of killing a woman in Rogers. Davis won a stay of execution last week based on arguments that Arkansas' method of lethal injection may inflict pain and suffering. Lawyers for Davis say it is unconstitutional to subject an inmate to such pain and suffering.

Lawyers for the Arkansas attorney general's office have asked the US Supreme Court to lift the stay. The state argues that it is being harmed by justice being delayed.

The Eighth U-S Circuit Court of Appeals is to hear the case on expedited basis, but the court set a filing deadline for Friday, which had the effect of delaying the execution.

Meantime, Davis is asking Governor Huckabee to make executions more public in the hope that this might deter others from committing violent crimes. He says in an e-mail, written by friend and anti-death penalty advocate Betsey Wright, that he has concerns about Arkansas' "hidden, almost secret, way executions are carried out" and he believes "it would be sensible" to make them more public.

Davis asked that witnesses be allowed to see the condemned prisoner walk to the execution chamber, and prison staff strapping the inmate to the gurney and inserting needles and tubes into the prisoner for lethal injection. Davis also suggested that news reporters witnessing the execution be allowed to use tape recorders and cameras, but said he does not want executions to take on "a circus-like atmosphere."

Monday, Governor Huckabee released the following statement:

"Betsy's letter obviously reached the media before it has reached me, but perhaps what we should ask for is a more thorough public airing of the details of the savage and senseless murder committed by Mr. Davis that put him on death row. I can assure the public after having reviewed the case that the manner in which Mr. Davis is scheduled to be put to death is kind compared to the brutal way he murdered the victim."

Dina Tyler, a spokeswoman for the state Correction Department, said prison officials follow law and policies that are designed to afford some dignity to the inmate and to make a stressful event easier for everyone involved. She said allowing cameras would turn executions into a circus side show.

(source: Associated Press)

[SoulTrainOz]

Attorneys for the state are awaiting word on whether a US Supreme Court justice will act on its request to proceed later in the day with the Arkansas execution of convicted killer Don Davis.

Under a death warrant signed by Governor Huckabee, Arkansas prison officials face a midnight deadline to execute Davis for the 1990 execution-style slaying of Jane Daniels of Rogers.

A federal judge in Little Rock last week granted a request by the
43-year-old Davis for a stay. Davis claims that Arkansas uses a lethal injection method that is cruel and unusual, and thus unconstitutional.

Correction Department spokeswoman Dina Tyler says prison officials are on standby for an execution at the Cummins Unit prison near Varner.

The Eighth US Circuit Court of Appeals set a hearing date for Friday. The hearing presumes that Davis' execution will be stayed, as the session is to be held after the scheduled execution.

(source: Associated Press)

[SoulTrainOz]

In Davis Case

Don Davis got a reprieve Wednesday night when U.S. Supreme Court justices refused to lift a stay of execution in his case.

Davis, 43, was to have been executed at 9 p.m. Wednesday for the shooting death of Jane Daniel of Rogers. The court's order was filed at 5:55 p.m.

Davis never left his cell for the death chamber, according to Dina Tyler, spokeswoman for the state's Department of Correction.

Daniel was killed Oct. 12, 1990, when she interrupted Davis while he was burglarizing her home. He shot her in the head, execution-style, with a .44-caliber pistol he had stolen from a residence adjacent to the Daniel home.

Members of the Daniel family were in the Pine Bluff area for the scheduled execution but could not be reached immediately for comment Wednesday evening. Varner, the location of the Cummins Unit and the state's death chamber, is south of Pine Bluff.

Mike Jones, Rogers' retired police chief who headed the murder
investigation, was also in Pine Bluff area awaiting the execution that he planned to witness.

"I am disappointed for the family," Jones said. "I respect the safeguards that are in place to protect everyone's rights, but these arguments at the last minute are ridiculous. It's been 16 years since Mrs. Daniel was murdered. But we will be back."

Wednesday's move by the justices means a hearing will be held Friday at the 8th Circuit Court of Appeals to consider an appeal filed last week by the state Attorney General asking that a stay of execution in the case be lifted.

The stay was imposed by Judge Susan Webber Wright after Davis appealed the execution on the grounds that Arkansas' lethal injection process is cruel and unusual.

However, the execution order expired at midnight Wednesday, meaning a new date will have to be set by Gov. Mike Huckabee.

Davis' appeal came after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in a Florida case that an appeal could be heard on the grounds that the drug combination used in that state could cause pain and thus could be considered cruel and unusual.

Justice Samuel Alito, who is assigned to hear emergency matters from Arkansas, was asked to consider the issue Monday when Davis' attorney, Alvin Schay of Little Rock, filed a brief. Alito, in turn, referred the matter to the entire court.

"Executing a prisoner in a manner that causes a substantial and
unnecessary risk or inflicting excruciating pain and torture offends this interest. In contrast, temporarily delaying an execution for the period of time necessary to ensure that the proposed procedure is humane and constitutional is a lesser injury," Schay wrote.

Tyler said Wednesday the prison could be ready within 30 minutes to carry out the execution if the stay had been lifted.

The prison staff also did not ask Davis for his last meal request.

"We have not taken 'last meal requests' because there's no need to put the inmate through that," Tyler said.

Prison officials set up a tent outside the prison for media, protesters and other observers to await word from the Supreme Court. Normally the prison's media center is opened for a scheduled execution, but the center remained closed because the execution wasn't officially scheduled, Tyler said.

The usual death penalty advocates and opponents did not appear, although an area was cordoned off with caution tape to accommodate them.

By 5 p.m. a cadre of state troopers, correction officers and local police had gathered. Officers blocked the road leading to the prison for security reasons, but by 6:30 the roadblock was gone and the officers had dispersed.

The assemblage of personnel and the wait for the court's ruling did not place undue pressure on the prison or its employees, Tyler said.

"It's just one of the tasks of a very difficult assignment," she said.

This round of appeals and counterappeals is the latest in court
maneuverings since the 1992 trial. In 1994 Davis appealed, claiming ineffective counsel but Benton County Circuit Judge Tom Keith rejected that contention in 1999.

After the state's Supreme Court upheld that ruling, Keith set a November 1999 execution date; however, it is up to the governor to set the actual date.

In June 2001, Davis claimed in an affidavit that he had changed his mind about appealing and was ready to die. 6 weeks later he notified the court he wanted appeals to continue because he believed he would be executed sooner if that process was completed.

U.S. District Judge Jimm Hendren ruled against Davis in 2002 and the matter went to the 8th Circuit Court of Appeals, which upheld the death penalty.

The U.S. Supreme Court refused to hear Davis' appeal in April clearing the way for Huckabee to set Wednesday's execution date.

(source: The Morning News)

[SoulTrainOz]

The Associated Press

LITTLE ROCK, AR - Arkansas death row inmate Don Davis has lived to see another sunrise, thanks to the U.S. Supreme Court. Yesterday, the high court refused to intervene to lift a stay of execution. If the stay had been lifted, that would have allowed the state to put Davis to death last night.

A death warrant signed by Governor Huckabee expired at midnight, so another execution date won't be set until after further hearings on Davis's case. The 43-year-old Davis was given the death penalty for the 1990 execution-style slaying of Jane Daniels of Rogers.

Corrections Department spokeswoman Dina Tyler said the prison was prepared for an execution, but that Davis had not been moved from his death row cell, nor had they given him a last meal.

The Eighth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals at St. Louis has set a deadline tomorrow for attorneys to submit filings on the case. Davis has joined another inmate's suit arguing that the state's method of execution, lethal injection, subjects him to the possibility of cruel and unusual punishment should something go wrong.

Source : The Associated Press

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