Hours after approval by a divided US Supreme Court, the state of Alabama has stayed the execution of Alan Eugene Miller, citing problems accessing his veins and time constraints. Alabama Department of Corrections (ADOC) Commissioner John Hamm said there were problems accessing Miller’s veins and the lethal injection protocol was not going to be completed before the death warrant expired at 11:59 p.m. Thursday, according to Fox 6 in Birmingham. Miller is reportedly alive and back in his cell at Holman Correctional Center. Hamm also told the media that an ambulance did leave the prison, but it was unrelated to the execution, the paper said. Alan Miller is on death row in Alabama. (Alabama Department of Corrections) Gov. Kay Ivey issued a statement early Friday morning shortly after ADOC announced the cancellation of the execution. Ivey’s office said it expects the execution to be reinstated at the earliest opportunity. JUDGE BLOCKS ALABAMA FROM LETHAL INJECTION AFTER PRISONER SAYS STATE LOST PAPERWORK “In Alabama, we are committed to law and order and the upholding of justice. Despite the circumstances that led to the cancellation of this execution, nothing will change the fact that a jury heard the evidence in this case and reached a decision.” Ivy said. “It doesn’t change the fact that Mr. Miller never questioned his crimes. And it doesn’t change the fact that three families are still grieving. We all know very well that Michael Holdbrooks, Terry Lee Jarvis and Christopher Scott Yancey did not they chose to die from bullets in the chest.” He added: “Tonight, my prayers are with the families and loved ones of the victims as they are forced to continue to relive the pain of their loss.” Execution by lethal injection was finally approved by the Supreme Court in a 5-4 decision Thursday night, after lower courts had previously ruled against execution in the future. The point of contention was a claim by Miller’s lawyers who said the state missed paperwork in requesting an alternative method of execution. Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall argued that there is no evidence to support that claim and asked a federal appeals court earlier in the week to lift the order blocking the execution. ALABAMA ASKS FEDERAL APPEALS COURT TO LET IT GO AHEAD WITH LETHAL INJECTION THIS WEEK Miller was sentenced to death after a jury convicted him of manslaughter in the deaths of Lee Holdbrooks, Christopher Scott Yancey and Terry Jarvis on August 5, 1999 in Shelby County, a suburb of Birmingham. Working as a delivery truck driver at the time, Miller allegedly shot and killed Holdbrooks and Yancy at Ferguson Enterprises in Pelham before driving a few miles to Post Airgas, a former employer, and killing Jarvis, according to the Alabama News Network. FILE – The sun sets behind Holman Prison in Atmore, Ala., on Jan. 27, 2022. (AP Photo/Jay Reeves) STATE SEEKS TO DISMISS LAWSUIT AIMED TO BLOCK ALABAMA PRISONER’S EXECUTION Each man was shot multiple times, and Miller was captured after a highway chase. Trial testimony indicated that Miller killed the men because he believed they were spreading rumors about him, including that he was gay. A defense psychiatrist hired found that Miller suffered from delusions and severe mental illness, but said his condition was not bad enough to use as the basis for an insanity defense under state law, according to court documents. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP Miller was to be the state’s third execution of the year following Matthew Reeves in January and Joe Nathan James Jr. in late July. The Associated Press contributed to this report.
