Utah prepares for first execution in over ten years

A judge in Cedar City affixed his signature to an execution warrant for Taberon Honie, scheduling his death by legal injection for August 8, 2024. At 48 years old, Honie has spent a quarter-century on death row following his 1999 conviction for the vicious slaying of Claudia Benn, 49, the mother of his former girlfriend.

During the hearing that stretched beyond an hour, lawyers from both camps sparred over the potential removal of the stay on Honie's execution before 5th District Judge Jeffrey C. Wilcox. Ultimately, Wilcox aligned himself with the prosecution's stance, decreeing that no legal hurdles remained to forestall the scheduled execution.

"The law requires me to sign both the warrant of execution and an order of delivery of the warrant of execution," Wilcox stated, according to the Salt Lake Tribune.

Honie's defense counsel, Eric Zuckerman, vowed to appeal the ruling, voicing apprehensions about Utah's newly unveiled plan to employ an untried lethal injection cocktail comprising ketamine, fentanyl, and potassium chloride. Zuckerman asserted that the state had failed to furnish vital data on these drugs, such as the dosages to be administered, and that officials did not intend to update execution protocols to incorporate the new substances.

"Mr. Honie's execution should not go forward until the Utah courts have had a full opportunity to review and rule on the merits of the constitutional challenge to these unprecedented procedures," Zuckerman stated, according to the platform.

The Utah Department of Corrections unveiled the new lethal injection combination, claiming it was selected "on the recommendation of medical professionals." While fentanyl has previously been deployed in executions in Nebraska, no state has ever utilized ketamine for this purpose, according to the Death Penalty Information Center.

The decision to schedule Honie's execution caps years of legal wrangling and appeals. Honie was condemned to die for the brutal slaying of Claudia Benn, a substance abuse counselor and the mother of his former girlfriend, with whom he shared a daughter. In the late hours of July 9, 1998, Honie forced his way into Benn's home, where she was minding her three grandchildren, and proceeded to savagely beat, bite, stab, and sexually assault her before police intervened.

Over the intervening years, Honie has mounted numerous unsuccessful bids to overturn his conviction and death sentence, citing factors like ineffective counsel, prosecutorial misconduct, and the unconstitutionality of capital punishment.

The hearing aimed to establish whether any legal grounds existed to maintain the stay on Honie's execution. Prosecutor Daniel Boyer argued that there were no legal grounds for the sentencing not to move forward, as Honie had exhausted all appeals to his conviction and sentence. Zuckerman, however, contended that an extraordinary writ he filed last week with the Utah Supreme Court, challenging Utah's methods of execution as unconstitutional and unknown, should qualify as a reason to keep the stay in place.

Zuckerman also raised concerns about Honie's ability to make an informed choice regarding his method of execution, given the lack of information provided about the new lethal injection drugs. Prosecutors maintained that by declining to choose between his 1999 sentencing, Honie had already chosen lethal injection by default and did not need additional time. Wilcox ultimately ruled that the death sentence would be carried out using lethal injection.

The hearing also addressed the transparency of the execution process, with Zuckerman arguing that corrections officials should update the execution protocols to provide specific information about the new drugs. The state's attorney, however, contended that no update was necessary, citing Utah law that allows for the use of "a lethal quantity of sodium thiopental or other equally or more effective substance sufficient to cause death."

Wilcox directed the Department of Corrections to progressively release all pertinent documentation concerning the execution protocol and the new drugs over the following two weeks.

As the legal battles rage on, Honie's case has reignited discussions surrounding the use of untested lethal injection drugs and the need for transparency in execution procedures. With his execution slated for August 8, 2024, the courts are likely to confront further challenges and intense scrutiny as Honie's attorneys grapple with their concerns over the constitutionality of Utah's execution methods.