US Supreme Court Rules Alabama Can Execute Man With Non-Preferred Method

WASHINGTON (Sputnik) - The US Supreme Court in a 5-4 decision ruled that Alabama may execute a death-row inmate using lethal objection despite his requests to be executed through suffocation due to a fear of needles, the high court said in an order filed Thursday.

Alabama permits death-row inmates to choose execution by nitrogen hypoxia – a rule introduced in 2018 because of challenges in obtaining the drugs needed for lethal injections. Alan Miller, who was convicted of killing three men in 1999, claims to have filed an application requesting the method that was lost by government staff.

A federal court halted Miller’s execution, which was initially set for Thursday, due to the state’s inability to perform the execution by means of nitrogen hypoxia. The judge found that it was likely Miller filed the application but that prison officials misplaced it.

However, the Supreme Court overturned the court's ruling on Thursday despite being upheld by a different appellate court earlier in the day.

"The application to vacate injunction presented to Justice Thomas and by him referred to the Court is granted. The September 19, 2022 order of the United States District Court for the Middle District of Alabama is vacated," the order said.

Justices Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan, Amy Coney Barrett and Ketanji Brown Jackson dissented from the court’s majority decision.

Eight executions are currently scheduled in the US before the end of 2022, including four in the state of Oklahoma, three in Texas, and one in Missouri, according to the Death Penalty Information Center (DPIC). DPIC currently lists Miller’s execution as "failed" after Alabama was not able to execute him via lethal injection Thursday night.