Ohio finally gets its execution protocol in order (and praised)

As reported in this local article, headlined “Judge praises execution policies; Ruling that allows next Ohio death to proceed also commends state protocol,” the Buckeye state now is getting kudos for its lethal injection administration.  Here is how the article starts:

A federal judge who has skewered Ohio over the way it carries out executions heaped unusually warm praise on the system and the state prisons director in a recent ruling.  The comments by U.S. District Judge Gregory Frost raise the possibility that successful challenges focusing on the process of putting inmates to death in the state could be coming to an end.

Frost has delayed executions over such challenges, though he has also let some proceed when it appeared as if the state had fixed problems.  Frost’s most recent ruling last week declined to stop the execution of Brett Hartman, scheduled to die Tuesday for stabbing an Akron woman to death in 1997.

The ruling doesn’t mean that problems in carrying out executions that might crop up in the future couldn’t spur new challenges.  Though Ohio executions generally go as smoothly as such procedures can, it has had some notable exceptions.  The best-known of those was the botched attempt in 2009 to execute Rommel Broom, whose execution was halted after two hours during which he was jabbed with IV needles 18 times.  Broom is back on Death Row fighting a second attempt to put him to death.

Also looming for the state: the expiration next year of its execution-drug supply. New lawsuits will inevitably follow any attempt to switch to a new drug.

In his ruling last Monday, Frost said prisons director Gary Mohr has created a command system with himself as lead enforcer that finally seems able to stop major changes to the state’s written execution policy. “Mohr in particular warrants credit for demonstrating significant, continuing leadership in this new approach,” Frost wrote.  “More than one witness testified that Mohr’s increased management of the execution process represents a sea change in director involvement.”

At another point, Frost said that everyone at the April 18 execution of Mark Wiles seemed to understand that there can be no deviations from policy, and any potential changes must go up the chain of command to Mohr.  Contrast that with Frost’s comments in July 2011 that stopped the execution of Kenneth Smith: “ It is the policy of the state of Ohio that the state follows its written execution protocol, except when it does not. This is nonsense.”

UPDATE:  Kent at Crime & Consequences provides this link to the latest opinion from Judge Frost in this litigation, and he this commentary:

The opinion is quite long but worth reading for anyone involved in this type of litigation. Frost recounts his earlier criticisms of the state officials, but he hammers the inmate’s lawyers as well for playing games.