In Charleston, South Carolina, a federal judge made the decision on Wednesday not to halt the execution of Stephen Stanko, a prisoner set to be executed in two days. The judge, Richard Gergel, stated that the inmate’s legal team did not provide substantial evidence indicating issues with the state’s lethal injection process. Stephen Stanko had opted for lethal injection as his method of execution, which was slated for Friday evening.
Stanko’s legal representatives sought permission to discuss the state’s recent execution method involving a firing squad. They contended that Stanko reconsidered his choice after learning about another execution, that of Mikal Mahdi, who died by firing squad. Autopsy reports suggested the shooters nearly missed Mahdi’s heart, raising concerns. However, during the 50-minute hearing in Charleston’s federal courthouse, Judge Gergel refused to consider these firing squad arguments and delivered his decision shortly thereafter. The South Carolina Supreme Court had previously denied Stanko’s appeal the prior month.
A central argument from Stanko’s lawyers revolved around the notion that inmates experience a drawn-out death during lethal injections. They claimed that in the last three executions via this method, inmates showed signs of being conscious and experienced sensations akin to drowning as fluid inundated their lungs. In these cases, the state administered two large doses of pentobarbital, although the procedure stipulated only one dose should suffice.
Defense attorney Daniel Plyler, representing the Department of Corrections, clarified that a second dose could be administered 10 minutes after the first if any residual heart activity was noticed, as the heart is the last organ to cease utilizing oxygen. Witnesses to these executions reportedly observed that inmates breathed a few times, which sometimes resembled snoring, before no longer breathing and losing consciousness within minutes.
“I don’t see it,” Judge Gergel remarked in response to the argument regarding dosage. Following this ruling, Stanko’s lawyers quickly filed an appeal.
Expected to be South Carolina’s sixth execution in a span of nine months, Stanko’s case is part of a wave of executions happening nationwide. Elsewhere, both Florida and Alabama executed prisoners earlier that week, and Oklahoma’s legal system cleared the path for another execution by lifting a temporary stay.
Stephen Stanko was convicted for murdering his 74-year-old friend, Henry Turner. The incident dates back to April 2006, when Stanko visited Turner’s residence under the pretext of his father’s death. Earlier that day, Stanko violently attacked his girlfriend, ruthlessly killing her, and afterward raped and attempted to kill her daughter, who survived and testified against him. He received a death sentence in that case as well.
In an extensive 49-page brief, Stanko’s attorneys challenged South Carolina’s execution methods, suggesting mismanagement in using bullet power in firing squads, improper placement of IV lines, and lapses in drug storage. After Judge Gergel relegated debates to lethal injection, all evidence brought by Stanko’s team regarding cruel and unusual punishment seemed to stem from other states’ experiences.
“There is no evidence the second dose of pentobarbital used in South Carolina’s protocol is administered because the first dose failed,” wrote Judge Gergel, dismissing Stanko’s claim. He acknowledged isolated errors in other states but found no such indications in South Carolina executions.
Joe Perkovich, a lawyer for Stanko, remarked, “Just because we don’t have someone lurching up from the gurney doesn’t mean it is done properly.”
Stanko’s legal team also brought up significant concerns about the firing squad procedure, citing an autopsy on Mahdi that depicted minimal damage to the heart, suggesting a prolonged and painful death. Dr. Jonathan Groner, a lethal injection specialist, indicated potential foul play or misplacement of the target, as the shooters were only 15 feet away. State officials refuted claims of wrongful execution of Mahdi. After Mahdi’s defense suggested a missed shot, correctional authorities confirmed all firearms discharged correctly, and no stray bullets were found on site.