Back to Ohio and the Taking-a-Break-from-Killing Fields

And so, granting a pause in our excoriation of Governor Perry, the Corsicana Sun, DA-turned-Justice Jackson, and cowchip-slinging/ethics-violating David Martin, we return our attention to the question of what the hell they're doing up in Ohio.

To remind you of the Ohio plot to date:

Act I. The time: May 2, 2006. The place: Southern Ohio Correctional Facility (SOCF), the death house. Enter Joe Clark, condemned, and various inadequately trained and prepared prison guards who plan to murder him. The action: A botched execution. Duration: 87 minutes. Clark: "It don't work. It don't work." Curtain.

Act II. The time: May 24, 2007. The place: SOCF, the death house. Enter Chris Newton, condemned, and various inadequately trained and prepared prison guards who plan to murder him. The action: A botched execution. Duration: 1 hour, 53 minutes. Unidentified guard: "Piss call. Time for a bathroom break, Chris." Curtain.

Act III. The time: September 15, 2009. The place: SOCF, the death house. Enter Romell Broom, condemned, and various inadequately trained and prepared prison guards who plan to murder him. The action: A failed execution. Duration: just over 2 hours. Broom: "Arrgh! Arrgh! Fuck!" Governor ex machina: Strickland calls a halt and grants a one week reprieve.

Act IV. The time: Over the next couple of days. Scene i: The places: Governor Ted's office; Department of Rehabilitation and Correction offices, SOCF; Ohio Supreme Court. The action: People rushing around confused, scratching their heads, banging into walls. Everyone together: "Fuck, now what do we do?" Scene ii: The places: Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals. Governor Ted's office. The action: Stay and reprieve. The Court: "Broom." Ted: "Reynolds and Durr, but not Biros." Scene iii: The places: Governor Ted's office. Department of Rehabilitation and Correction offices. Action: People rushing around confused, scratching their heads, banging into walls. Governor Ted & DRC spokespeople, together: "We're doing a new plan - or not - but it isn't needed 'cause the old one is great."*

Act V has yet to be written.

Let's recap a couple of other details. Strickland was clear when he granted the reprieves to Reynolds and Durr that he intended for Biros to be executed in December and other killings to go forward. The amended or new or backup or whatever plans DRC was making would, therefore, have to be done by then. DRC, in turn, said that the new plans (or amended plans or backup plans or whatever they'll be if they ever are) would take as long as necessary to make and that there would be further reprieves as needed until they were done.

In the midst of that, Judge Frost was getting set to hold hearings on Ohio's approach to lethal injection in Biros's case. Originally, the hearings were going to be in 2008. Then last March. Then October. After the failed killing of Broom, he was added to the hearings. Then the 6th Circuit added Reynolds. The hearing was rescheduled for November so that there would be time to gather more information about what happened to Broom.

Today, with new plans in the works, Judge Frost said there's more discovery to do. He put the hearings off until June, 2010. And he granted Biros an indefinite stay. (Sorry, I can't find a copy of the order you can link to without a PACER account.)

Next up is Abdullah Sharif Kaazim Mahdi. He's scheduled for January. I wouldn't count on it.

Governor Ted may be getting a moratorium whether he likes it or not. Or, of course, maybe not.

_______
* Only the Joe Clark quote is accurate. The rest is made up, but accurately reflects what happened.