Gov. Dave Heineman approved a lethal-injection protocol for Nebraska on Wednesday, ending the death penalty’s monthslong limbo in the state and opening the gate to a new round of lawsuits.
There never was any doubt Heineman, a death-penalty supporter, would sign off on the protocol that replaces electrocution and he did so without publicizing his approval.
Last year, he supported Nebraska lawmakers when they directed the state Department of Correctional Services to craft a lethal-injection protocol to replace electrocution.
The direction from lawmakers followed a 2008 ruling from the state Supreme Court that said the chair amounted to unconstitutional cruel and unusual punishment. Nebraska had been the only state with electrocution as its sole means of execution and, since the ruling, has technically been without a means of executing prisoners.