Utah switching lethal drug for upcoming prisoner execution
Jul 20, 2024, 5:12 PM | Updated: 5:19 pm
SALT LAKE CITY — There are new developments in Utah’s first prisoner execution in 14 years. The state is now changing the drug it plans to use to execute convicted killer Taberone Honie in just a matter of weeks.
“We are moving forward and planning to fulfill our duty as assigned on the date,” Glen Mills, director of communications and government relations with the Utah Department of Corrections, said.
According to the UDOC, that now means switching the drug used to kill Honie.
Convicted of murdering his ex-girlfriend’s mother, in front of her grandchildren back in 1998, Honie is sentenced to die August 8, 2024. The State had been planning to use a combination of three drugs: ketamine, fentanyl, and potassium chloride, but Honie’s attorneys challenged the combination. They argued the drugs would cause him unnecessary suffering, and identified pentobarbital, a drug used in 10 other states, as an alternative.
So rather than fight it out in court, the State of Utah filed a motion Friday stating they’re going to switch.
“Even though we do believe in the three-drug combination, we think this could’ve got caught up in court and could’ve been timely and continue to delay this and also costly,” Mills said.
Speaking with one of Honie’s attorneys Saturday through email, despite the State agreeing to switch drugs, it’s not the end of their challenges to keep Honie alive.
“Serious uncertainty still remains about the State’s last-minute execution plan. We are reviewing the State’s filings and will file a response in the Third District Court on Wednesday,” Eric Zuckerman, assistant federal public defender, said.
So, what’s next in Honie’s execution?
The 3rd District Court will weigh in on the State’s new motion, and the Utah Board of Pardons and Parole will meet Monday to hear his petition to possibly switch his sentence to life without parole.
