One of my favorite childhood photos is of me running through the living room with a lampshade on my head. My mom always said I loved unique hats — so it comes as no surprise that this popcorn bucket is screaming my name. There will be plenty of time to catch up on my questionable statement pieces later, but first, a much bigger docket: The Supreme Court starts its new term today, with cases on climate change, semi-automatic weapons, and immigration policies on tap. Plus, one justice may have hinted at a potential retirement. Also this week: the Nobel Peace Prize announcement and the National Book Awards finalists. Now, let's get to today's headlines…
— Marina Carver / Senior Editor / Brooklyn, NY
A Reckoning
Tennessee's Capital Punishment Faces Mounting Scrutiny
What's going on: Last week’s botched execution of Tennessee’s Christa Pike — who was set to be the first woman put to death in the state in more than 200 years — continues to raise questions about what went wrong and what happens next. The 50-year-old remains in the hospital, where she’s unconscious and on a ventilator after surviving two rounds of pentobarbital — a sedative that was supposed to be fatal. (She’s the only person believed to have survived such a massive dose.) Pike’s lawyers had warned that her unique blood disorder would make lethal injection difficult, but the state proceeded anyway after the Supreme Court cleared her execution. While her health remains in limbo, Gov. Bill Lee (R-TN) announced over the weekend that the head of Tennessee’s prison system will step down at the end of the month.
Ethical questions arise: Legal analysts say what happened to Pike amounts to cruel and unusual punishment. How she recovers could dictate what happens next. Her current mental state puts her up against a Supreme Court ruling that bans executions for those who lack a “rational understanding” of the reason they’re being put to death. However, if she recovers, the state could try to kill her again — though Lee has paused executions in Tennessee for the rest of the year. In the meantime, the state's process for capital punishment is facing scrutiny. The state has long been secretive about how it obtains and tests lethal drugs. Drug companies also typically restrict access to these products, while those administering the injections are often untrained, resulting in what one law professor calls “a recipe for disaster from the start.”
