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up front Friday 22 November 2019

AP Exclusive: DOJ would take halted executions to high court

Continued from Front and his belief that execu-
tions serve as an effective
Her ruling temporarily deterrent and an appropri-
postpones four of the five ate punishment for some
scheduled executions be- crimes, including mass
ginning next month; the shootings and the killings of
fifth had already been halt- police officers.
ed. It’s possible the govern- Still, executions on the fed-
ment could win an appeal eral level have been rare.
in time to begin executions The government has put
Dec. 9, but that would to death only three defen-
be an unusually fast turn- dants since restoring the
around. federal death penalty in
“This decision prevents the 1988, most recently in 2003,
government from evading when Louis Jones was exe-
accountability and mak- cuted for the 1995 kidnap-
ing an end-run around the ping, rape and murder of a
courts by attempting to young female soldier.
execute prisoners under In 2014, following a
a protocol that has never botched state execution
been authorized by Con- in Oklahoma, President
gress,” said the inmates’ at- Barack Obama directed
torney, Shawn Nolan. “The the Justice Department to
court has made clear that conduct a broad review
no execution should go for- of capital punishment and
ward while there are still so issues surrounding lethal in-
many unanswered ques- jection drugs.
tions about the govern- Barr said in July that the
ment’s newly announced Attorney General William Barr speaks with an Associated Press reporter onboard an aircraft en Obama-era review had
execution method.” route to Cleveland, Thursday, Nov. 21, 2019, during a two-day trip to Ohio and Montana. been completed, clearing
Most Democrats oppose Associated Press the way for executions to
the death penalty. Re- publican President Donald Trump has spoken often about capital punishment resume.q