Supreme Court allows lethal injection drug used in botched executions
The lethal injection drug midazolam is constitutional, the Supreme Court ruled Monday. The sedative was used as part of a three-drug cocktail to execute Oklahoma death row inmate Clayton Lockett in April 2014. He died of a heart attack after writhing in pain during the 43-minute procedure. The drug is also used in several other states as the nation faces a lethal drug injection shortage, The New York Times reports.
The Oklahoma death row inmates who brought the challenge lost 5-4. Justice Samuel Alito wrote for the majority that the drug didn't violate the Constitution's ban on cruel and unusual punishment.
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