Kein weiterer Hinrichtungsversuch

Doyle Hamm wurde des 1987 begangenen Mordes an Patrick Cunningham schuldig gesprochen und zum Tode verurteilt. Zur Zeit des Verbrechens war Doyle Hamm 29 Jahre alt. Am 14. Februar ist er 61 Jahre alt geworden. Er befindet sich bereits seit 30 Jahren im Todestrakt. Aufgrund seines Lymphdrüsenkrebses und dessen Behandlung hat sich der Zustand seiner Venen noch weiter verschlechtert. Diese waren bereits durch intravenösen Drogenkonsum geschädigt.

Doyle Hamms Anwalt hat gesagt, dass er mit dem Bundesstaat Alabama seit kurz nach dem ersten Hinrichtungsversuch am 22. Februar Lösungsgespräche führte. Er hat sich bei Amnesty International für die "Hilfe und Unterstützung" in diesem Fall bedankt.

Weiter auf Englisch: A habeas corpus petition filed in federal court on 5 March opened with a description of what happened to Doyle Hamm during the attempted execution on 22 February: "On Thursday night, February 22, 2018, the state of Alabama strapped Doyle Lee Hamm to the lethal injection gurney in the execution chamber at Holman Correctional Facility and began to execute him. From about the time that the United States Supreme Court denied his application for a stay, at about 8.45 CST [Central Standard Time], to approximately 11.30pm CST when the execution was called off, the execution team inserted needles and catheters in his legs, ankles, and groin in an attempt to achieve venous access and end his life via lethal injection. For seven months preceding the execution, counsel for Doyle Hamm had vehemently, repeatedly, diligently, and properly warned the state of Alabama, the Governor of Alabama, the Alabama Attorney General, the Commissioner of Corrections, the Wardens of both Donaldson and Holman Correctional Facilities, the Alabama Supreme Court, the federal District Court for the Northern District of Alabama, the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals in Atlanta, and the United States Supreme Court in Washington, DC, that any attempt to access his veins would cause unnecessary pain and suffering in violation of the Eighth Amendment of the United States Constitution because of his medical condition." The petition argued that a second execution attempt "by any means or methods" would violate the Constitution. A preliminary medical report by the doctor who examined Doyle Hamm after the first execution attempt was filed with the petition, and included photographs of the puncture wounds caused during this attempt on 22 February.

On 26 March attorneys for Doyle Hamm and for the State of Alabama entered into a private settlement agreement to resolve all pending litigation in federal and state court over the planned execution of Doyle Hamm. The terms of the agreement are confidential, but Doyle Hamm’s lawyer has said that Doyle Hamm, his family, and his legal team "are extremely relieved". After signing a confidential settlement agreement, the lawyer jointly moved with the State of Alabama to dismiss a civil rights lawsuit and the federal habeas corpus petition in the Northern District of Alabama, as well as his state petition in Cullman County, Alabama. This will end the state’s efforts to set another execution date. On 26 February, the District Court judge had issued an order setting 6 March for a "scheduling conference". She added that "Before the conference, the parties SHALL discuss the possibility of an early settlement" [emphasis in original].

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