Mississippi high court: Execution plans can be kept secret
Source: Associated Press
Jeff Amy, Associated Press Updated 6:22 pm, Thursday, April 13, 2017
JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — Mississippi does not have to publicly disclose details of how it carries out executions, the state's highest court ruled Thursday.
In a 7-2 decision, the Mississippi Supreme Court dismissed a lawsuit by the Roderick & Solange MacArthur Justice Center that argued the state's corrections department hadn't disclosed enough information in response to a 2014 public records request.
A chancery judge had ordered more information disclosed, but the state appealed. Last year, while the appeal was still pending, legislators changed the law, joining states nationwide in shielding drug purchases and other execution methods from public disclosure.
The state argues that releasing names of drug suppliers could allow death penalty opponents to terminate the supply using public pressure. States have had increasing trouble obtaining execution drugs because some pharmaceutical makers don't want their medicines used for that purpose.
Read more: http://www.chron.com/news/us/article/Mississippi-court-rules-new-law-keeps-execution-11071720.php