Byron Black is scheduled to be given a lethal injection after a legal battle about whether a working defibrillator in his chest would cause him pain.
A death-row inmate is scheduled to be executed in Tennessee on Tuesday in what is believed to be the first time a man has been put to death with a working defibrillator in his chest.
Byron Black, 69, will be given a lethal injection after a legal battle about whether the implantable cardioverter-defibrillator will shock his heart when the drug takes effect potentially causing him unnecessary pain.
Governor Bill Lee declined Monday to grant a reprieve to Black after the U.S. Supreme Court rejected his appeals, clearing the way for the execution.Why It Matters
The nonprofit Death Penalty Information Center said it is unaware of any other cases in which a person on death row made similar claims to Black’s about defibrillators or pacemakers. Black’s attorneys said they haven’t found a comparable case, either.
His execution would be the second in Tennessee since May, after none were carried out for five years. Twenty-seven men have died by court-ordered executions in the U.S. this year; another nine are scheduled to be put to death in seven states for the remainder of 2025. It is the highest total since 2015.What To Know
Black was convicted of the 1988 fatal shootings of his girlfriend Angela Clay, 29, and her two daughters, Lakeisha, age 6, and Latoya, age 9.
