Appeals court stays execution of Tennessee death row inmate
Source: Associated Press
Travis Loller, Associated Press
Updated 8:27 pm CDT, Wednesday, October 10, 2018
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — A federal appeals court has temporarily halted the execution of Tennessee death row inmate Edmund Zagorski to allow time for consideration of arguments that he had poor legal representation during his trial and sentencing.
In a split decision, a three-judge panel of the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals issued a stay of Zagorski's execution, which had been scheduled for Thursday. Execution plans remain on hold while the court resolves questions of whether Zagorski had adequate representation. The court set no immediate timeline for when it would decide the issue.
In a split decision, a three-judge panel of the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals issued a stay of Zagorski's execution, which had been scheduled for Thursday. Execution plans remain on hold while the court resolves questions of whether Zagorski had adequate representation. The court set no immediate timeline for when it would decide the issue.
Zagorski's lawyer, Kelley Henry, had argued on a separate track that the state's lethal injection method of execution was unconstitutional. Earlier in the week she had notified the state that Zagorski preferred to die in the electric chair because he considered the state's method of lethal injection a violation of the 8th Amendment's prohibition against cruel and unusual punishment.
Read more: https://www.chron.com/news/crime/article/Tennessee-says-request-for-electric-chair-came-13296046.php