It has been just over a month since executioners in Nashville abandoned the lethal injection of Tony Carruthers, who was strapped to a gurney for more than an hour as they tried and failed to place a secondary IV line. But while Gov. Bill Lee quickly granted Carruthers a one-year reprieve, his administration has not responded to urgent calls for a pause on the state’s death penalty.
Three more death row prisoners, including the state’s only condemned woman, are still scheduled to be executed this year: Darrell Hines on Aug. 13, Christa Pike on Sept. 30 and Gary Sutton on Dec. 3. The governor’s office did not respond to the Banner’s request for a comment on the status of those executions.
State officials have also remained silent in the face of questions about Dr. Mark Fowler, who attempted to establish a central IV line in Carruthers despite not having performed the procedure in 13 years…