GOP Moves to Hide Texas Execution Drug Suppliers From Public
Yesterday, the state of Texas executed Manuel Garza, Jr., a San Antonio man convicted of killing a police officer in 1991. He was the sixth person executed by the state this year.
However, according to Rep. John Smithee (R-Amarillo), the state’s ability to execute more criminals could be in jeopardy–unless the Legislature passes a bill to hide the suppliers of lethal injection drugs from the public. Said Smithee, “We’re going to reach the point…where we can’t conduct any execution, where we can’t carry out capital punishment in Texas,” if the state doesn’t make the providers of the drugs a secret.
According to Smithee, the secrecy is needed in order to protect the compounding pharmacies who provide lethal injection drugs, who have reportedly faced threats of violence when their identities have been known. He continued, “”Many of these vendors who supply these doses to the state have refused to do it any further…It’s just not worth the risk of violence.” Smithee’s bill would also prohibit even the death row inmates and their attorneys from knowing who provided the drugs for their execution.
State officials have stressed the threats to drug providers as a reason why their identities need to be kept secret. But as the Fort Worth Star-Telegram pointed out:
Read more: http://www.burntorangereport.com/diary/29993/gop-moves-to-hide-texas-execution-drug-suppliers-from-public
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