Utah is set to execute Taberon Honie on August 8, 2024, for the murder of Claudia Benn in 1998. However, Utah officials have recently changed their plans regarding the execution method due to concerns over causing unnecessary pain and potential legal challenges.
Initially, Utah intended to use a three-drug cocktail consisting of ketamine, fentanyl, and potassium chloride for Honie's execution. However, this combination has been challenged in a lawsuit filed by Honie's attorneys due to concerns about causing serious pain and potential constitutional issues.
In response to these challenges, Utah officials have now obtained pentobarbital as an alternative drug for the execution. Pentobarbital is a sedative that has been used in other states for lethal injections and is considered a safer, more effective method compared to the previously intended combination.
Honie's attorneys had suggested using pentobarbital in their lawsuit challenging the three-drug cocktail. The Utah Department of Corrections stated that they will have obtained a dose of pentobarbital within three days of Honie's execution, and they have asked a judge to cancel upcoming hearings over the three-drug cocktail with the new lethal injection drug being obtained.
Honie is facing execution for the 1998 murder of Claudia Benn. Iron County prosecutors said Honie broke into her home, slit her throat and sexually assaulted her with a knife. Her grandchildren were in the home at the time. He has exhausted most of his appeals.
The Utah Board of Pardons & Parole has scheduled a commutation hearing for Honie next week. The board has the sole authority in Utah to decide whether to convert his death sentence to life in prison.
Utah's Department of Corrections announced that they have obtained a new drug, pentobarbital, for the execution of Taberon Honie on August 8. This change comes after concerns were raised about the previously intended three-drug combination and its potential to cause unnecessary pain and suffering.
Assistant Utah Attorney General Keith Barlow announced that Utah has obtained a dose of pentobarbital for Honie's execution, stating that it is a safer, more effective, and constitutionally sound method compared to the previously intended combination. Pentobarbital was suggested by Honie's attorneys in their lawsuit challenging the three-drug cocktail.
Honie is facing execution for the 1998 murder of Claudia Benn. Iron County prosecutors said Honie broke into her home, slit her throat and sexually assaulted her with a knife. Her grandchildren were in the home at the time. He has exhausted most of his appeals.
The Utah Board of Pardons & Parole has scheduled a commutation hearing for Honie next week. The board has the sole authority in Utah to decide whether to convert his death sentence to life in prison.
