Ohio lethal injection law upheld

U.S. District Court Judge Gregory Frost, beginning last week, rejected the appeals of 15 Ohio inmates, USAToday reported yesterday morning, upholding Ohio's never-tried "backup method" in executions that would inject drugs directly into an inmate's muscle when veins can't be readily accessed. ( Here )

The article continued by saying that, while the ruling does not affect any pending executions, "it makes future challenges of injection more difficult by pointing out that a higher court has already dealt with the issue."

In dismissing the appeals Judge Frost wrote, that "the Sixth Circuit has conclusively foreclosed nearly all of these challenges absent a distinguishable or particularized showing by an inmate. Reynolds (Brown) v. Strickland, No.2:10-cv-27, (S.D. Ohio Feb. 1, 2010) …. The court of appeals has since proceeded to adhere to the conclusive nature of its holding and has twice upheld this Court's determination that the issues in this litigation have already received an appellate answer…"

"The essential starting point in the appellate disposition of Plaintiff's claims began with this Court's December 7, 2009 denial of a temporary restraining order for inmate Kenneth Biros in Cooey v. Strickland, No. 2:04-cv-1156 (S.D. Ohio Dec. 7, 2009)," the ruling states. "Biros appealed, and on the same day on which this Court had filed its opinion, the Sixth Circuit issued an opinion affirming this Court. Cooey (Biros) v. Strickland, (6th Cir. 2009)." The Sixth Circuit there essentially summarized "[t]he majority of the claims regarding the one-drug IV injection are foreclosed by [Baze v. Rees, 553 U.S. 35 (2008),] and its progeny."