Alabama's Execution Dilemma: A Test of Constitutional Limits The upcoming execution of Jeffery Lee in Alabama has reignited a contentious debate about capital punishment, following a Supreme Court ruling that blocked the state's use of nitrogen hypoxia.
At issue is whether a state can be trusted to uphold its own constitutional obligations when it comes to executing prisoners. Lee was convicted in 1998 of murdering two people during a pawnshop robbery near Selma.
Initially, he chose to be executed via nitrogen hypoxia, which Alabama had developed as an alternative to lethal injection.