Florida Supreme Court: Execution is on

[Freddie Stubbs]

Source: Miami Herald

The new use of a drug in the state’s lethal injections is constitutional, the Florida Supreme Court ruled on Tuesday in the case of a man scheduled to be executed next month for shooting and killing a Coral Gables police officer more than three decades ago.

Manuel Valle, 61, is scheduled to be executed on Sept. 1 for fatally shooting Officer Louis Pena in 1978.

In its unanimous decision, the court ruled that the state can use pentobarbital, a barbiturate, in its three-drug lethal injection. Florida switched its drug protocol in June, after production of the anesthetic sodium thiopental was discontinued. The court lifted an earlier stay of execution.

Pentobarbital is intended to knock out inmates before a second drug paralyzes them and a third stops their heart.

Read more: http://miamiherald.typepad.com/nakedpolitics/2011/08/florida-supreme-court-execution-is-on.html

[Laura PourMeADrink]

1. God....they need to read John Grishom's "The Confession" nt

[Laura PourMeADrink]

2. March against death penalty - October 22 in Austin

http://marchforabolition.org/

[msanthrope]

4. Um, this guy did it. It was not a false confession. But he might get a stay

on other issues...

Mainly, the issue of a due process and clemency hearings. But Mr. Valle left his fingerprints on the cop car when he shot Officer Pena and tried to kill Officer Wolfe. He was positively identified by the cop, and by his own passenger....

Mr. Valle tried to escape the death penalty by arguing that he did not kill Officer Pena--he merely shot at Officer Wolfe. It was not a viable defense.*** It took Officer Pena 10-15 minutes to die, slowly choking on his own blood--and recorded by police radio.



***The "I shot the sheriff, but I didn't kill the deputy" defense seldom works.

I'm not pro-death penalty, but this is hardly a case where you are going to prove that Mr. Valle is an executed innocent.

[Laura PourMeADrink]

5. Um, doesn't matter...the book is much broader than just one case nt

[msanthrope]

6. The book is a badly-written beach read about a racially-charged case.

A Grisham novel? Really?

[SoapBox]

3. Kill, kill, kill...the War Hawk types...the Holy, Moral and Pious...

the Conservative...

They all LOVES kill'n them some people!

Any excuse will do...war...crime...you name it...They can hardly wait for their version of pay-back.

[udbcrzy2]

7. Defense is opposing the method of the execution

I guess they are not saying he's not guilty of the crime, but only opposing the method of execution.

Just use the same method he used when he executed his victim.

[24601]

9. While I appreciate the sentiment, he did not execute his victim. He

murdered his victim.

And when he is executed, it will not be murder but will be a constitutional and legal procedure that will deter him him from ever killing again.

[ladjf]

8. Barbarians!!! nt