Supreme Court nixes Alabama request for nitrogen execution, which lower court ruled unconstitutional

By — Kim Chandler, Associated Press Kim Chandler, Associated Press Leave your feedback Share Copy URL https://www.pbs.org/newshour/nation/supreme-court-nixes-alabama-request-for-nitrogen-execution-which-lower-court-ruled-unconstitutional Email Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Pinterest Tumblr Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Supreme Court nixes Alabama request for nitrogen execution, which lower court ruled unconstitutional Nation Jun 12, 2026 9:51 AM EDT ATMORE, Ala. (AP) — An Alabama man facing the death penalty by nitrogen gas was spared Thursday as the U.S. Supreme Court refused to set aside a lower-court ruling that found the method is unconstitutionally cruel, issuing a brief order that came well after the hour originally planned to initiate Jeffery Lee's execution. The justices decided not to lift an injunction blocking Alabama from carrying out what would have been the nation's ninth execution by nitrogen gas, rejecting a last-minute legal battle by the state as it sought to carry out the sentence in the evening. A spokesperson for the Alabama Department of Corrections said the execution was off for the evening and the state would not try another method. Educate your inbox Subscribe to Here’s the Deal, our politics newsletter for analysis you won’t find anywhere else. The high court voted 6-3 and did not explain its reasoning. Three of the conservative justices — Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito, and Neil Gorsuch — said they would grant Alabama's request to lift the injunction and let the execution go forward. In a statement the legal team for Lee, 49, hailed the decision and noted that his jury had voted for a sentence of life, which a judge overruled. "His jury voted for life. Two courts ruled the method unconstitutional. Today, the Constitution prevailed," the statement said. "Now Governor Ivey can finish what the jury started: restore the jury's verdict of life without parole." READ MORE: What to know about execution methods in the U.S. after judge blocks Alabama from using nitrogen gas Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall promised the families of the victims that authorities will continue to seek justice, saying in a statement: "The State is prepared to do whatever is necessary to see Mr. Lee's lawful sentence carried out." "Tonight's ruling is a miscarriage of justice, not for us, but for Jimmy Ellis and Elaine Thompson, who Jeffery Lee brutally and senselessly murdered and left on the floor of their place of business," Marshall said. Tonight I am also keeping their families in mind, many of whom were prepared to witness the final act of justice be served." WATCH: What's behind a recent rise in executions in America after years of decline Prison officials said Lee did not request a final meal Thursday but had potato chips, Skittles, water and a Sprite in the hours ahead of his possible execution. The ruling was at least a temporary, rare victory for opponents of capital punishment in a state that has had one of the busiest death chambers