Supreme Court denies Alabama’s attempt to execute Jeffery Lee by nitrogen gas

Lee’s case became the latest to test the legality of nitrogen gas executions. A lower court had ruled the method is unconstitutionally cruel.

The Supreme Court denied Alabama’s request to execute a man using nitrogen gas late Thursday after two lower court rulings blocked the method and found it violates the constitutional ban on cruel and unusual punishment.

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The state had filed for an emergency order just hours ahead of the execution of Jeffery Lee, 49, scheduled for 6 p.m. Thursday local time.

Justices Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito and Neil Gorsuch noted their dissent and would have granted the state’s request to overturn the lower courts.