Missouri appeal could delay Mississippi death penalty case

JACKSON, Miss. (AP) – A Missouri appeal over whether lethal injection would violate the Constitution’s ban on cruel and unusual punishment could delay a Mississippi case over similar issues.

Lawyers for some death row inmates in Mississippi are asking a federal judge to postpone an August trial on Mississippi’s death penalty procedures. They say state Attorney General Jim Hood doesn’t oppose the delay.

The U.S. Supreme Court in April agreed to review the Missouri case.

Both it and the Mississippi case hinge on what an inmate must do to show an alternate execution method is available that would reduce risk of needless suffering.

If a judge agrees, no executions in Mississippi are likely until after the Missouri case is decided. Arguments are set for this fall, and a ruling might not come until 2019.

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