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Gov. Lee announces plans to change state's lethal injection protocol after changing TDOC leadership

The report from a months-long third-party review of TDOC's lethal injection protocols was given to the Governor's office on Dec. 14.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Governor Bill Lee said he planned to hire new leadership at the Tennessee Department of Correction after an investigation into the state's lethal injection protocol. He also said the new leadership would work on changes to the state's protocols, in consultation with Lee and the state Attorney General's office.

The announcement comes after a months-long, third-party review of how lethal injections are administered and prepared at TDOC. The review started in May after the state retained U.S. Attorney Ed Stanton to review the protocols and recommend corrective actions. He used Butler Snow LLP to help with the review.

"While some interviewees expressed opinions regarding the propriety of the death penalty or necessity of endotoxin testing in future protocols, Butler Snow was not asked to examine these issues and did not do so," the report said.

To make changes to the lethal injection protocol, Lee said the state will take four specific steps. Those steps are listed below.

  1. Make staffing changes at the department’s leadership level.
  2. Hire and onboard a permanent TDOC commissioner in January 2023.
  3. New department leadership will revise the state’s lethal injection protocol, in consultation with the Governor’s office and the Tennessee Attorney General’s office.
  4. New department leadership will review all training associated with the revised protocol and make appropriate operational updates.

The release said Interim Commissioner Lisa Helton will stay in her role until a permanent commissioner is announced in January 2023. After that, she will serve as the assistant commissioner for community supervision.

Since starting the review, Lee issued temporary reprieves for five executions scheduled for 2022. According to a release, there are no scheduled executions for 2023 in Tennessee.

In April, Lee paused the execution of Oscar F. Smith the same night he was set to be executed — after he had already chosen his last meal. In that case, he said there was an oversight in preparations for the lethal injection.

According to the Associated Press, the report also found that the state has not complied with its own lethal injection process since it was first revised in 2018. The report said that several executions were carried out without proper testing of the drugs used.

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