AS YOU WISH

SCOTUS Sides With Death Row Inmate Who Wants to Die by Firing Squad

The decision could make it simpler for inmates to challenge their state’s execution method.

A death row inmate can challenge their state’s execution protocol under federal civil rights law, the Supreme Court ruled Thursday—even if that means their chosen method is firing squad. The decision could set a precedent, making it simpler for inmates to challenge their state’s execution protocol. The inmate, Michael Nance, sued after Georgia only offered lethal injection, which Nance argued would create a substantial risk of severe pain. The decision was split 5-4, and Justice Elena Kagan writing the majority opinion. Justice Amy Coney Barrett wrote the dissent and was joined by Justices Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito, and Neil Gorsuch. “[The federal civil rights law related to deprivation of rights] broadly authorizes suit against state officials for the deprivation of any rights secured by the Constitution,” Kagan wrote. “Read literally, that language would apply to all of a prisoner's constitutional claims.”