Ohio Warned Not to Import Execution Drug

A Food and Drug Administration letter to the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction indicated the state was considering importing sodium thiopental from overseas for use in executions. The letter warned the department that importing the drug would violate federal law: “Please note that there is no FDA approved application for sodium thiopental, and it is illegal to import an unapproved new drug into the United States.” A similar letter was sent to Nebraska officials after the state spent over $50,000 in an attempt to obtain lethal injection drugs from a source in India. All executions were put on hold in Ohio after the botched execution of Dennis McGuire in 2014, as the state has pursued a new execution protocol. The potential foreign supplier was not revealed because Ohio, like many other states, keeps the identity of execution-drug suppliers secret.

(C. McDaniel, “Ohio Intended To Illegally Import Execution Drugs, FDA Letter Says,” Buzzfeed, August 18, 2015). See Lethal Injection and Botched Executions.