South Carolina Supreme Court Allows Death Row Inmate’s Attorney to Choose His Execution Method

Attorney for Death Row Inmate Can Decide His Execution Method, Says SC Supreme Court

In a landmark decision by the South Carolina Supreme Court, death row inmate Freddie Owens will be allowed to have his attorney decide his method of execution. Scheduled for execution on September 20, Owens holds the stark choices of lethal injection, electrocution, or death by firing squad, dictated by a state law maintained by the court last month.

Freddie Owens had previously surrendered his decision-making powers to his legal representative, Emily Paavola, ahead of his execution date, thereby allowing her to make the decisive choice. As per the order issued on Tuesday by the justices, this authorization stands valid. The state Department of Corrections must undertake Paavola’s choice for Owens, the order added.

Owens’ Religious Beliefs

The high court denied the need for a hearing where Owens could publicly express his understanding of the finality of Paavola’s decision. If Emily Paavola does not specify a preference for either lethal injection or firing squad by the end of Friday, Owens will face electrocution, the default execution method since 2021.

Owens has a strong religious objection to choosing his execution method, equating it to suicide, which his attorneys disclosed is prohibited by his Muslim faith.

Concerns about Lethal Injection

In line with the separate filings on Tuesday, other attorneys representing Owens are seeking additional information related to the lethal injection drugs. They are urging the Supreme Court to make the prisons agency reveal the details, enabling Paavola to make an informed choice.

The attorneys argued for the release of crucial details like the storage and testing process of these drugs, without violating the state’s shield law. These facts would establish if the drugs would still be potent on September 20 when the criminal justice system intends to use them.

Events Leading to the Conviction

The life of Freddie Owens took a drastic turn in 1999 when he was convicted for the murder of gas station clerk Irene Graves during a slew of armed robberies, two years earlier. The motive behind Graves’s murder was her inability to open the store’s safe. Leaving with just $37.29 from the cash register, Owens, and his accomplice left the gas station only after shooting Graves in the head.

A pending call still awaits a response from the court about whether Owens’ execution should proceed or not. His attorneys have requested a halt to the execution, based on new-found evidence that could potentially grant him a new trial.

The execution of Freddie Owens, if carried out, will be the first since 2011 in the state of South Carolina. There have been two failed attempts to execute Owens, both in 2021, which were halted amidst legal issues surrounding the method of execution.

Owens is one amongst the 32 men on death row in South Carolina. Five others have exhausted their appeals and are next in line to be executed. The Supreme court, however, stated that it would maintain a minimum five-week interval between scheduling successive executions.