Latest news with #MikalMahdi
Fox News
6 days ago
- General
- Fox News
South Carolina death row inmate chooses lethal injection after firing squad controversy
A South Carolina man on death row who had been considering death by firing squad opted Friday for lethal injection instead after another inmate appeared to linger before dying when bullets apparently missed his heart. Stephen Stanko's attorneys told him that lethal injection would feel like drowning when a lethal dose of pentobarbital is injected into the inmate's veins and there's a rush of fluid into the lungs. Medical experts hired by the state have said the drugs render an inmate unconscious before the inmate feels any pain, but experts hired by inmates have said the rush of fluid can feel like drowning. The U.S. Supreme Court denied a delay to his June 13 execution Wednesday that was requested so he could learn more about his options. In addition to lethal injection and firing squad, the convicted double murderer could have also chosen the electric chair. An autopsy on Mikal Mahdi, the killer of an off-duty police officer executed by firing squad in April, showed the inmate may have been in excruciating pain for up to a minute, much longer than the expected 15 seconds to lose consciousness, after all the bullets missed his heart, his lawyers said, calling it "botched." Stanko had been sentenced to death twice for two separate murders. In April 2006, Stanko, 57, beat and strangled girlfriend Laura Ling to death and raped her teenage daughter and slit her throat. The daughter survived and testified against him at his trial. Hours after the murder, he went to his 74-year-old friend Henry Turner's home, shot him to death and stole his truck. South Carolina resumed executions in September after a 13-year break after it ran out of lethal injection drugs and pharmacies refused to provide more unless a new secrecy law protected their privacy.
The Independent
6 days ago
- Health
- The Independent
South Carolina inmate chooses to die by lethal injection amid concerns about firing squad
South Carolina death row inmate Stephen Stanko on Friday chose to die by lethal injection after his lawyers said he was troubled by what appeared to be a lingering death of the last person in the state who was killed by a firing squad. Stanko, who set to die June 13, had a choice among firing squad, lethal injection or the electric chair. His lawyers said in previous court filings he didn't want to suffer what he thought was cooking from thousands of volts of electricity. Firing squad questions They said he was leaning toward the firing squad before questions surfaced about whether Mikal Mahdi suffered agonizing pain for about 45 seconds — three times longer than expected — at his April 11 execution after the firing squad nearly missed his heart. In reviewing autopsy reports, attorneys told him the state's lethal injection protocols appear to send a rush of fluid into the lungs that feels like drowning when a lethal dose of pentobarbital is put into the inmate's veins. Stanko's lawyers had asked the South Carolina Supreme Court to delay his execution so they could get more information about the firing squad or further investigate any potential problems, but the justices refused their request Wednesday. South Carolina's multiple executions Stanko, 57, has been sentenced to death twice in the state for two separate murders — the killing of a friend and the killing of his girlfriend as he raped her daughter. South Carolina restarted executions in September after obtaining pentobarbital used in lethal injections thanks to a new secrecy law. The state didn't execute a prisoner from 2011 to 2024 after its supply of lethal injection drugs expired and pharmacies refused to sell them more unless their identities could be kept secret. The crimes Stanko is being executed for killing his 74-year-old friend Henry Turner. Stanko went to Turner's home in April 2006 after lying about his father dying, and shot Turner twice while using a pillow as a silencer, authorities said. Stanko stole Turner's truck, cleaned out his bank account and spent the next few days in Augusta, Georgia, where he told people in town for the Masters golf tournament that he owned several Hooters restaurants. He stayed with a woman who took him to church. She called police once after seeing his photo and learning that he was wanted, police said. Hours before killing Turner, Stanko beat and strangled his girlfriend in her home and raped her daughter before slashing the teen's throat. The daughter survived and testified against him at one of his trials. How the lethal injection will happen During Stanko's execution, he will be strapped to a gurney with his arm outstretched. Medical workers will place an IV in his arm before the curtain is opened to the witness room. His lawyer can read a final statement and then the execution will start with no announcement. It has typically taken about 20 minutes before a doctor comes in, checks the inmate and declares him dead. Autopsies done on two of the three previous inmates killed by lethal injection in South Carolina in the past year have shown their lungs filled with massive amounts of fluid. Experts said that is what usually happens when someone is given a massive dose of pentobarbital. Medical experts hired by the state said the drug knocks the inmate unconscious before they ever feel any other sensation or pain. Witnesses to the executions said inmates don't have any signs of consciousness after about 30 seconds. Other experts hired by lawyers for the inmates said prisoners may still be able to feel and that the rush of fluid is like drowning. One of the three inmates killed by lethal injection last year did not choose to have an autopsy for religious reasons. Two doses of the drug In the three most recent lethal injection deaths, prison officials have given two large doses of the sedative pentobarbital about 10 minutes apart. Most other states and the federal government give just one dose of the drug but have a second on hand if needed. Prison officials have not said why they are giving two doses or whether that is part of their normal procedures, citing a 2023 law that keeps secret the providers of lethal injection drugs, the identities of members of execution teams and the procedures used.
Associated Press
6 days ago
- Health
- Associated Press
South Carolina inmate chooses to die by lethal injection amid concerns about firing squad
COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — South Carolina death row inmate Stephen Stanko on Friday chose to die by lethal injection after his lawyers said he was troubled by what appeared to be a lingering death of the last person in the state who was killed by a firing squad. Stanko, who set to die June 13, had a choice among firing squad, lethal injection or the electric chair. His lawyers said in previous court filings he didn't want to suffer what he thought was cooking from thousands of volts of electricity. Firing squad questions They said he was leaning toward the firing squad before questions surfaced about whether Mikal Mahdi suffered agonizing pain for about 45 seconds — three times longer than expected — at his April 11 execution after the firing squad nearly missed his heart. In reviewing autopsy reports, attorneys told him the state's lethal injection protocols appear to send a rush of fluid into the lungs that feels like drowning when a lethal dose of pentobarbital is put into the inmate's veins. Stanko's lawyers had asked the South Carolina Supreme Court to delay his execution so they could get more information about the firing squad or further investigate any potential problems, but the justices refused their request Wednesday. South Carolina's multiple executions Stanko, 57, has been sentenced to death twice in the state for two separate murders — the killing of a friend and the killing of his girlfriend as he raped her daughter. South Carolina restarted executions in September after obtaining pentobarbital used in lethal injections thanks to a new secrecy law. The state didn't execute a prisoner from 2011 to 2024 after its supply of lethal injection drugs expired and pharmacies refused to sell them more unless their identities could be kept secret. The crimes Stanko is being executed for killing his 74-year-old friend Henry Turner. Stanko went to Turner's home in April 2006 after lying about his father dying, and shot Turner twice while using a pillow as a silencer, authorities said. Stanko stole Turner's truck, cleaned out his bank account and spent the next few days in Augusta, Georgia, where he told people in town for the Masters golf tournament that he owned several Hooters restaurants. He stayed with a woman who took him to church. She called police once after seeing his photo and learning that he was wanted, police said. Hours before killing Turner, Stanko beat and strangled his girlfriend in her home and raped her daughter before slashing the teen's throat. The daughter survived and testified against him at one of his trials. How the lethal injection will happen During Stanko's execution, he will be strapped to a gurney with his arm outstretched. Medical workers will place an IV in his arm before the curtain is opened to the witness room. His lawyer can read a final statement and then the execution will start with no announcement. It has typically taken about 20 minutes before a doctor comes in, checks the inmate and declares him dead. Autopsies done on two of the three previous inmates killed by lethal injection in South Carolina in the past year have shown their lungs filled with massive amounts of fluid. Experts said that is what usually happens when someone is given a massive dose of pentobarbital. Medical experts hired by the state said the drug knocks the inmate unconscious before they ever feel any other sensation or pain. Witnesses to the executions said inmates don't have any signs of consciousness after about 30 seconds. Other experts hired by lawyers for the inmates said prisoners may still be able to feel and that the rush of fluid is like drowning. One of the three inmates killed by lethal injection last year did not choose to have an autopsy for religious reasons. Two doses of the drug In the three most recent lethal injection deaths, prison officials have given two large doses of the sedative pentobarbital about 10 minutes apart. Most other states and the federal government give just one dose of the drug but have a second on hand if needed. Prison officials have not said why they are giving two doses or whether that is part of their normal procedures, citing a 2023 law that keeps secret the providers of lethal injection drugs, the identities of members of execution teams and the procedures used.
Associated Press
28-05-2025
- General
- Associated Press
South Carolina Supreme Court rejects inmate's request for more firing squad details
COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — The South Carolina Supreme Court on Wednesday rejected a request for more information on the firing squad from an inmate set to die next month over concerns about whether a man executed by the method last month suffered a lingering death. The justices unanimously ruled that attorneys for Stephen Stanko did not prove the previous execution was botched even though lawyers argued the firing squad nearly missed the inmate's heart and prolonged his death. They also said all three bulleted fired may not have hit the prisoner's body. Stanko, 57, is scheduled to die June 13. He has been sentenced to death twice in the state for two separate murders — one a friend and one his girlfriend as he raped her daughter. Stanko has until Friday to decide if he wants to die by firing squad, lethal injection or the electric chair. Potential firing squad problems Stanko's execution is the first scheduled in South Carolina since Mikal Mahdi was put to death by firing squad on April 11. Mahdi's lawyers released autopsy results that show the shots that killed him barely hit his heart and suggested he was in agonizing pain for three or four times longer than experts say he would have been if his heart had been hit directly. Stanko's lawyers asked the South Carolina Supreme Court to require prison officials to release more information about the firing squad and lethal injection, saying he was leaning toward the firing squad until the possible problems with Mahdi's execution surfaced. Mahdi was the second inmate to die in South Carolina by firing squad. Autopsy issues The only photo of Mahdi taken at his autopsy shows two apparent chest wounds. Officials said all three bullets fired by the three volunteer prison employees hit Mahdi, with two going through the same hole. During the state's first firing squad death, the autopsy found that Brad Sigmon's heart had been destroyed. Just one of the four chambers of Mahdi's heart was perforated, which likely meant he didn't die in the 15 seconds experts predicted he would have if the squad's aim was true, according to his lawyers. Witnesses said Mahdi, who had a hood over his head, groaned 45 seconds after he was shot. Lawyers for Stanko said Mahdi's autopsy lacked X-rays, an examination of his clothing or other testing typically done to allow the results — like where a bullet tracked — to be independently verified. South Carolina Supreme Court responds But the state Supreme Court rejected the request for any reports the prison agency produces to review executions, the description of the training the firing squad conducts and the steps taken when an X-ray is done before the shooting to locate the heart. The justices also refused to require prison officials to say if the same members of the firing squad and target placement team used for Mahdi would work on Stanko's execution. 'Appellant has made no showing that Mahdi's execution was 'botched' or that protocols were not followed such that Appellant needs further information to make an informed election of the method of his execution,' the justices wrote. The crimes Stanko is being executed for killing his 74-year-old friend Henry Turner. Stanko went to Turner's home in April 2006 after lying about his father dying and then shot Turner twice while using a pillow as a silencer, authorities said. Stanko stole Turner's truck, cleaned out his bank account and then spent the next few days in Augusta, Georgia, where he told people in town for the Masters golf tournament that he owned several Hooters restaurants. He stayed with a woman who took him to church. She then called police once she saw his photo and that he was wanted, police said. Hours before killing Turner, Stanko beat and strangled his girlfriend in her home and raped her daughter before slashing the teen's throat. The daughter survived and testified against him at one of his trials. 'Stephen Stanko is just plain evil. He has in his core down deep inside something that makes him evil. He's a bad man, he knows it, and he likes it. He doesn't turn away from it. He will hide it. He's very, very, very good at hiding it, but you cannot equate evil with insanity,' then-prosecutor Greg Hembree said in his closing statement at one of Stanko's trials. Hembree later became a state senator and was the chief sponsor of the 2021 law allowing South Carolina to use a firing squad.
The Independent
28-05-2025
- General
- The Independent
South Carolina Supreme Court rejects inmate's request for more firing squad details
The South Carolina Supreme Court on Wednesday rejected a request for more information on the firing squad from an inmate set to die next month over concerns about whether a man executed by the method last month suffered a lingering death. The justices unanimously ruled that attorneys for Stephen Stanko did not prove the previous execution was botched even though lawyers argued the firing squad nearly missed the inmate's heart and prolonged his death. They also said all three bulleted fired may not have hit the prisoner's body. Stanko, 57, is scheduled to die June 13. He has been sentenced to death twice in the state for two separate murders — one a friend and one his girlfriend as he raped her daughter. Stanko has until Friday to decide if he wants to die by firing squad, lethal injection or the electric chair. Potential firing squad problems Stanko's execution is the first scheduled in South Carolina since Mikal Mahdi was put to death by firing squad on April 11. Mahdi's lawyers released autopsy results that show the shots that killed him barely hit his heart and suggested he was in agonizing pain for three or four times longer than experts say he would have been if his heart had been hit directly. Stanko's lawyers asked the South Carolina Supreme Court to require prison officials to release more information about the firing squad and lethal injection, saying he was leaning toward the firing squad until the possible problems with Mahdi's execution surfaced. Mahdi was the second inmate to die in South Carolina by firing squad. Autopsy issues The only photo of Mahdi taken at his autopsy shows two apparent chest wounds. Officials said all three bullets fired by the three volunteer prison employees hit Mahdi, with two going through the same hole. During the state's first firing squad death, the autopsy found that Brad Sigmon's heart had been destroyed. Just one of the four chambers of Mahdi's heart was perforated, which likely meant he didn't die in the 15 seconds experts predicted he would have if the squad's aim was true, according to his lawyers. Witnesses said Mahdi, who had a hood over his head, groaned 45 seconds after he was shot. Lawyers for Stanko said Mahdi's autopsy lacked X-rays, an examination of his clothing or other testing typically done to allow the results — like where a bullet tracked — to be independently verified. South Carolina Supreme Court responds But the state Supreme Court rejected the request for any reports the prison agency produces to review executions, the description of the training the firing squad conducts and the steps taken when an X-ray is done before the shooting to locate the heart. The justices also refused to require prison officials to say if the same members of the firing squad and target placement team used for Mahdi would work on Stanko's execution. "Appellant has made no showing that Mahdi's execution was 'botched' or that protocols were not followed such that Appellant needs further information to make an informed election of the method of his execution," the justices wrote. The crimes Stanko is being executed for killing his 74-year-old friend Henry Turner. Stanko went to Turner's home in April 2006 after lying about his father dying and then shot Turner twice while using a pillow as a silencer, authorities said. Stanko stole Turner's truck, cleaned out his bank account and then spent the next few days in Augusta, Georgia, where he told people in town for the Masters golf tournament that he owned several Hooters restaurants. He stayed with a woman who took him to church. She then called police once she saw his photo and that he was wanted, police said. Hours before killing Turner, Stanko beat and strangled his girlfriend in her home and raped her daughter before slashing the teen's throat. The daughter survived and testified against him at one of his trials. 'Stephen Stanko is just plain evil. He has in his core down deep inside something that makes him evil. He's a bad man, he knows it, and he likes it. He doesn't turn away from it. He will hide it. He's very, very, very good at hiding it, but you cannot equate evil with insanity,' then-prosecutor Greg Hembree said in his closing statement at one of Stanko's trials. Hembree later became a state senator and was the chief sponsor of the 2021 law allowing South Carolina to use a firing squad.
