National

Judge Reserves Decision On Challenge Of Montana's Execution Methods

Darpan News Desk The Canadian Press, 04 Sep, 2015 12:18 PM

CALGARY — A judge has reserved his decision on a constitutional challenge of Montana's execution methods that is likely to impact a Canadian on death row there.

Lawyers for two death-row inmates, including Ronald Smith of Red Deer, Alta., and the State of Montana provided conflicting evidence over whether a sedative called for under Montana's lethal injection protocols was an "ultra-fast-acting" barbituate.

Lawyers for the prisoners believe the use of the drug could lead to an "excruciating and terrifying" death.

Ron Waterman of the American Civil Liberties Union thinks the case went well and expects Judge Jeffrey Sherlock to release his decision by the end of the month.

Smith has been on death row in Montana since 1983 for the murders of two young men after he was bingeing on drugs and alcohol.

He originally requested he be executed, but later changed his mind and has been fighting to stay alive ever since.

Prev Next

MORE National ARTICLES

High Court OKs Extradition Of Two To Face Cold Case Murder Charges

OTTAWA — The Supreme Court of Canada has cleared the way for two men to be extradited to New Hampshire to face trial in a decades-old double murder.

High Court OKs Extradition Of Two To Face Cold Case Murder Charges

Battle Over DND Budget As Liberals Claim Spending On Track To Historical Low

OTTAWA — Numbers compiled by the federal Liberals suggest spending on the Canadian military will hit a historic low in the coming decade, despite a planned Conservative injection of $11.8 billion starting in 2017.

Battle Over DND Budget As Liberals Claim Spending On Track To Historical Low

Northern Ontario First Nation Community Begins Evacuation Due To Flooding

KASHECHEWAN, Ont. — The evacuation of a remote northern Ontario First Nation has begun as the rapidly rising Albany River threatens the community.

Northern Ontario First Nation Community Begins Evacuation Due To Flooding

Kathleen Wynne Says Transit, Infrastructure Plans Will Be Cornerstone Of Ontario Budget

TORONTO — Sales of Crown assets to pay for billions of dollars in new transit and infrastructure projects will be a key focus of today's Ontario budget, also expected to include details on a new provincial pension plan.

Kathleen Wynne Says Transit, Infrastructure Plans Will Be Cornerstone Of Ontario Budget

Mammoth Park? Extinct Beast's Genome Decoded, Possible Step In Reviving Species

Scientists have sequenced the near-complete genomes of two woolly mammoths that lived 40,000 years apart in different areas of Siberia, providing new insights into the species' evolution and eventual extinction at the close of the Ice Age.

Mammoth Park? Extinct Beast's Genome Decoded, Possible Step In Reviving Species

Family Of Loretta Saunders Shares Grief After Guilty Pleas In Daughter's Murder

Miriam Saunders says she's been overwhelmed with grief since the slaying last year of her daughter Loretta, but the Inuit woman from Labrador says she still plans to continue her daughter's work as an advocate for murdered and missing aboriginal women.