Kentucky lawmakers move forward to reinstate death penalty after 15-year ban

FRANKFORT, Ky. ( FOX 56 ) — Attorney General Russell Coleman has taken action to end the Commonwealth’s ban on the death penalty.

On March 7, Coleman filed a motion with the Franklin Circuit Court to lift a 15-year ban on the death penalty, per the Attorney General’s office.

According to the Death Penalty Information Center , in July 2019, the Commonwealth’s execution protocol was found unconstitutional because regulations could allow intellectually disabled prisoners to be executed. The U.S. Supreme Court’s 2002 decision in Atkins v. Virginia prohibited the use of capital punishment against those with an intellectual disability.

In March, the Beshear Administration published an amended capital punishment regulation, which would comply with the court’s 2010 ruling.

“For almost 15 years, Kentucky has been bogged down by delays as violent criminals tie up our legal system with costly litigation as they seek to avoid justice,” said Attorney General Coleman. “The survivors of the victims of these horrific crimes have suffered in limbo for long enough. They deserve the justice that was lawfully delivered by a jury.”

“As a prosecutor, I took an oath to uphold the law as passed by the people’s representatives. That’s exactly what I intend to do,” Coleman said. “Now that Governor Beshear’s administration has restarted the process to legally impose the death penalty, it’s finally time to deliver justice for victims and their families.

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The motion claims that all grounds for the temporary injunction against the enforcement of lethal injection protocols have been resolved, and the ban should be lifted.

“Our office argued to end the Court’s 15-year ban because of our commitment to Kentucky’s law and the pursuit of justice,” Coleman said. “We hope the Court gives victims’ families the closure they have been promised for so long.”

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