Judge rules prisoner is entitled to more info about drug to be used
A federal judge has canceled the Ash Wednesday execution of a DeSoto Parish man who was sentenced to death for the beating and scalding death of his 6-year-old stepson two decades ago.
U.S. District Judge James Brady ruled that state corrections officials have given Christopher Sepulvado too little information about the drug that will be used in the lethal injection and the methods involved in carrying out the execution.
Brady says without that information, lawyers for Sepulvado cannot protect his constitutional right against cruel and unusual punishment.
Until this week, the Department of Corrections hadn't confirmed it switched from a three-chemical lethal injection process to a one-drug execution method. The department gave the name of the drug it plans to use, but offered no further details to Sepulvado's lawyers.
No new execution date was immediately set.
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