A federal judge is mulling whether the media should have greater access to witness executions in Oklahoma after a group of journalists and news organizations sued following a botched lethal injection in the spring.
Attorneys for The Oklahoma Observer and Guardian US newspapers argued their case Thursday before U.S. District Judge Joe Heaton, who suggested he would issue a ruling before the state's next scheduled execution on Jan. 15.
They argue Oklahoma prison officials violated the First Amendment when they lowered the blinds and prevented reporters from witnessing all of the April 29 execution of Clayton Lockett after it had started. Lockett struggled on the table during the execution.
Assistant Attorney General Dan Weitman argued Lockett's problematic execution was an anomaly and says prison officials need discretion over execution protocol.
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