Capital Beat: Repeal aside, New Hampshire not ready for executions
The vote was decisive, but Gov. Chris Sununu held his ground. Facing a 223-116 House vote to repeal the state’s death penalty, the governor maintained his previous stance: no.
But even as death penalty supporters cheered the promised veto and opponents vowed to change the governor’s mind, all sides face an inconvenient reality. New Hampshire’s death penalty is, for now, functionally nonexistent.
There are no drugs on hand to fulfill a lethal injection, according to Jeff Lyons, spokesman for the Department of Corrections. There are no protocols for how to obtain those drugs, where to obtain them or how to administer them. There isn’t even an existing chamber in which to carry an execution out.
And as New Hampshire’s only death row inmate proceeds through the court system, the state is holding off on making any major decisions on to move forward. That inmate, Michael Addison, was convicted for the 2006 killing of a Manchester police officer, Michael Briggs; his conviction is presently being appealed in federal court.
Read more: http://www.concordmonitor.com/Capital-Beat-New-Hampshire-still-little-prepared-for-executions-17151664
