On Eve of Execution, Oklahoma Courts Can’t Agree on Who Has Power to Stay

UPDATE: (4/​21). The Oklahoma Supreme Court (5 – 4) has stayed the exe­cu­tions of Lockett and Warner. Earlier:In a 3 – 2 deci­sion on April 18, the Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals (OCCA) said it could not grant a stay of exe­cu­tion to two death row inmates fac­ing immi­nent exe­cu­tion because they had not filed a prop­er motion. Earlier, the Oklahoma Supreme Court said the OCCA should be the court to grant a stay, espe­cial­ly since there were unset­tled ques­tions about the con­sti­tu­tion­al­i­ty of the state’s exe­cu­tion law. The two inmates, Clayton Lockett (l.) and Charles Warner (r.), have argued that the ​“veil of secre­cy” sur­round­ing Oklahoma’s lethal injec­tion pro­to­col is uncon­sti­tu­tion­al. A low­er court ruled in their favor in March. Vice-Presiding Judge Clancey Smith of the OCCA dis­sent­ed from the 3 – 2 rul­ing, say­ing, ​“I would grant a stay to avoid irrepara­ble harm as the appel­lants face immi­nent exe­cu­tion. I would do so in con­sid­er­a­tion of the appel­lants’ rights, to avoid the mis­car­riage of jus­tice, and in comi­ty with the Supreme Court’s request for time to resolve the issues pend­ing before it.” Attorneys for Lockett and Warner have filed an addi­ton­al appeal to the state Supreme Court, stat­ing, ​“The Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals (OCCA) has repeat­ed­ly dis­avowed any author­i­ty to stay Appellants’ exe­cu­tions, even in the face of this Court’s direct rul­ing to the con­trary. It sim­ply can­not be that no court in this State has the pow­er to enter a stay of exe­cu­tion in this case. Such a result would close the courts of jus­tice to Appellants, in vio­la­tion of the Oklahoma Constitution.”

Clayton Lockett is sched­uled to be exe­cut­ed on April 22; Charles Warner on April 29.

(S. Cooper, ​“Oklahoma Court denies request to stop exe­cu­tions,” Associated Press, April 18, 2014; Defendants’ ​“Renewed Emergency Application for Stay” (Ok. S. Ct., April 21, 2014), at 5). See Lethal Injection and Arbitrariness.