Tennessee Court Allows Execution Despite Defibrillator | JQJO

The Tennessee Supreme Court ruled that death row inmate Byron Black's implanted defibrillator need not be deactivated before his scheduled execution on Tuesday. This overturns a lower court's order. The state court argued that deactivation would constitute an unlawful stay of execution. While the higher court didn't address potential pain caused by the device during lethal injection, it leaves open the possibility of deactivation if it doesn't interfere with the execution. Black was convicted of murdering his girlfriend and her two daughters in 1988. His lawyers have filed a motion for a stay of execution.