By Brian Lyman | Editor
“I am not stunned by this, and I don’t know if the state of Alabama should be either. It seemed to be clear that this method was not operating like its proponents initially said it would, that it would painlessly kill someone in a matter of seconds.” - John H. Blume, Cornell University constitutional law professor, on the nitrogen gas execution injunction
CRIMINAL JUSTICE
By Ralph Chapoco
Federal courts earlier this month stopped Alabama from executing Jeffery Lee by nitrogen gas, finding that it created “air hunger” that went beyond constitutionally-permitted suffering in capital punishment. The ruling puts the future of the execution method in doubt in Alabama, but experts say the ruling may also discourage other states from adopting the method, which has caused convulsions and agonized breathing in those subjected to it.
DC BUREAU
By Jacob Fischler and Jonathan Shorman
Democrats have grown more optimistic about their chances of taking the U.S. Senate in the fall, due to President Donald Trump’s unpopularity. But many of the most competitive races are taking place in states that voted for Trump in 2024. Control of the Senate will likely come down to nine states that will measure how big a national blue wave might be in November.
COMMENTARY
By Brian Lyman
Later this year, the Alabama Legislature should relocate into a new statehouse. The new building should correct the physical defects of the old one. But the central problems of our state government — and its essentially undemocratic nature — will follow them across the street. In my column this week, I write that it can be daunting to hope for a better government, but that hope gives us a vision of the future we want.
ICYMI
Several Republican-led states rebrand Pride Month | Anna Claire Vollers, Stateline
As Trump’s immigration dragnet grows, so do complaints of detention center conditions | Ariana Figueroa, DC Bureau
Family planning organizations sue Trump administration over Title X funding announcement | Kelcie Moseley-Morris, Stateline
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