With Gorsuch’s Vote, Supreme Court Allows Arkansas to Execute Ledell Lee

Slate ^ | April 21, 2017 | Mark Joseph Stern

[Diana in Wisconsin]

Taxpayers win one for a change.

[Sacajaweau]

Since when is this a Federal matter?

[Impala64ssa]

Justice Gorsuch is off to a flying start.

[JBW1949]

Due to the heinousness of this guy’s crimes, the Justices that voted not to execute should be forced to cover expenses for any condemned allowed to evade the death phase....

[taxcontrol]

Nitrogen Asphyxiation

In a well ventilated room:
Strap the condemned down
Attach a medical breathing mask and brain wave monitor
supply 100% Nitrogen at 1.1 atmospheres
Wait till brain waves are flat for 5 min

[Sasparilla]

...Since when is this a Federal matter?...
It’s a Constitutional 4th Amendment Due Process Life, Liberty, or Property depravation issue.

[SkyDancer]

"whom Arkansas originally planned to kill over ..."

Execute, not kill.

[ichabod1]

he dindunuffin

[circlecity]

"Justice Neil Gorsuch cast the deciding vote allowing Lee to die."

What made Gorsuch the "deciding vote" as opposed to any of the other 4 Justices who refused to grant a stay?

[ColdOne]

Nice! Now take out the rest of them. They did very horrible crimes. This one raped his victim in front of the daughter before killing her.

[ichabod1]

Cuz’ it would have been a tie if he had not been there?

[kingu]

Can someone please correct me if I'm wrong? I long thought that it required five justices to authorize an emergency stay; a requirement which does not change if there are only 8 sitting justices.

Is it really accurate to say Gorsuch voted against the stays when he didn't approve them?

Not to shower on anyone’s parade, but the reality is that the motions only garnered the support of 4 of the 5 justices required. I'm glad Gorsuch didn't jump on the liberal parade, but I'm not throwing a celebration over it either.

[deport]

What made Gorsuch the “deciding vote”

*****************

By order the votes were taken is my guess—newest member last to vote.
But that doesn’t mean his or any of the others were less important.

[Trump20162020]

As someone else said, probably because it would have been a 4-4 vote one month ago.

[circlecity]

"Cuz’ it would have been a tie if he had not been there?"

You could say the same thing about any of the other justices who denied the stay.

[bigbob]

BLindfold. Bang.

[HiTech RedNeck]

Gorsuch chose a politically conservative position and nobody should be surprised.

However the entire process is going down the rabbit hole. If we are so squeamish that medicine is needed to kill a convict we might as well confess we are ready to give it up.

[Nifster]

Because all death penalty cases can and usually are appealed all the way to the supreme court

[chesley]

Hanging works for me. In the town square, by the county sheriff.