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Court Upholds Lethal Injection Method In Ky.

2008

In Baze v. Rees, the U.S. Supreme Court finds Kentucky’s method of execution – lethal injection – constitutional. Two death-row inmates had challenged the procedure, saying that it posed unnecessary risks that an inmate would suffer severe, undetectable pain in light of possible alternatives. The challenge focused on the details of the injection: chemicals used, personnel’s training, adequacy of medical supervision, and the consequences and risk of error. The Court says the risks are not so substantial as to violate the Eighth Amendment.