Hearing date moved again on SC constitutionality of electric chairs and firing squads

COLUMBIA, S.C. (WIS) - Monday the South Carolina Supreme Court’s hearing on the constitutionality of electric chairs and firing squads moved again. The hearing is now scheduled for Jan. 5 in Columbia, it was initially scheduled for Jan. in Conway and then moved up to Dec. in Columbia.

The hearing is the latest step in a legal battle that began after lawmakers passed legislation allowing inmates to be executed by firing squad. It was halted earlier this year after facing legal hurdles. In April the South Carolina Department of Corrections reported it was ready to follow through.

The first person eligible to be executed in that manner, Richard Moore, was given a choice between the electric chair and a firing squad. He chose the firing squad. Moore was convicted of a 1999 robbery that turned deadly after he shot a clerk during a struggle.

Lethal injection drugs have been unavailable to the department. SCDC said manufacturers have been unwilling to sell the drugs or components necessary to make them.

A lawsuit was filed questioning the constitutionality of the execution methods. A judge ruled against the constitutionality and an appeal was filed by South Carolina. South Carolina’s Supreme Court said it would hear the case but the date has been moved several times.

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