Missouri: Investigate Execution of Man Awaiting Appeal!
- by: Kristi Arnold
- recipient: Missouri Attorney General Chris Koster
A man still awaiting a decision from the U.S. Supreme Court on an appeal was dragged out of his cell and summarily executed.
Herbert Smulls' lawyer laid out the timeline of Smulls' appeals and execution:
At 10:11, the final lethal injection protocols were initiated. By this time, the 8th Circuit had rejected all of the claims before it, leaving only an active appeal before the Supreme Court. At 10:20 Smulls was pronounced dead. Ten minutes later, at 10:30, the Supreme Court notified the lawyers that Smulls’ final stay request had been denied at 10:24. This means that Missouri began to execute a man 13 minutes before it was entirely sure it could do so. Smulls was pronounced dead four minutes before the Supreme Court finally authorized Missouri to kill him.
This is not only unconstitutional, it's also inhumane to execute a man who could potentially be released from the sentence of execution by the Supreme Court.
Ask Missouri Attorney General to investigate the circumstances of the execution.
Dear Sir,
We the undersigned would like you to launch an investigation into a recent execution. A man still awaiting a decision from the U.S. Supreme Court on an appeal was dragged out of his cell and summarily executed.
Herbert Smulls' lawyer laid out the timeline of Smulls' appeals and execution:
At 10:11, the final lethal injection protocols were initiated. By this time, the 8th Circuit had rejected all of the claims before it, leaving only an active appeal before the Supreme Court. At 10:20 Smulls was pronounced dead. Ten minutes later, at 10:30, the Supreme Court notified the lawyers that Smulls’ final stay request had been denied at 10:24. This means that Missouri began to execute a man 13 minutes before it was entirely sure it could do so. Smulls was pronounced dead four minutes before the Supreme Court finally authorized Missouri to kill him.
This is not only unconstitutional, it's also inhumane to execute a man who could potentially be released from the sentence of execution by the Supreme Court.
Please investigate the circumstances of the execution.
