Tennessee Executes Inmate Despite Warnings Over Heart Device

Byron Black, a 69-year-old death row inmate in Tennessee, was executed by lethal injection Tuesday morning despite urgent concerns from his legal team and medical advocates. At the center of the controversy was Black’s implantable cardioverter defibrillator, a heart device designed to shock the heart during irregular rhythms. According to witnesses, Black appeared to suffer during the execution and at one point cried out, “It’s hurting so bad,” as reported by the Associated Press.

Black was convicted in 1988 for the murders of his girlfriend Angela Clay and her two young daughters, ages 6 and 9. He was pronounced dead at 10:43 a.m. local time at Riverbend Maximum Security Institution in Nashville. He gave no final statement before his death.

Leading up to the execution, Black’s attorneys worked to have the defibrillator deactivated, warning it could conflict with the effects of the lethal injection drugs and cause repeated shocks as he died. “I interpret that my client was tortured today,” said his attorney Kelley Henry in a statement to NBC News.

Court battles and ethical concerns over medical intervention

A lower court initially sided with Black’s team and ordered the defibrillator shut off. But the Tennessee Supreme Court overturned the ruling, stating the lower judge lacked the authority to interfere with the state’s execution process. Meanwhile, Nashville General Hospital, where the device had been implanted, declined to deactivate it, citing ethical concerns, according to The Washington Post.

Black’s lawyers also sought clemency from Tennessee Governor Bill Lee and filed emergency appeals with the U.S. Supreme Court, all of which were ultimately denied. At the time of his death, Black was wheelchair-bound and suffering from multiple serious health conditions including heart failure, kidney failure, progressive dementia, and what his attorneys described as intellectual disability. He had spent over 30 years on death row.

Witnesses described groaning and visible distress during the execution. The Associated Press reported that Black’s legal team will request a full autopsy and access to the defibrillator’s internal data to determine whether the device discharged during the lethal injection process.

Execution reignites scrutiny of Tennessee’s lethal injection protocol

Black’s execution marks the second in Tennessee this year and follows the state’s resumption of capital punishment after a temporary halt due to issues with its lethal injection protocols. His case could be the first known example in the United States where an execution went forward with an active implantable defibrillator in place. Legal and ethical experts told The Washington Post the decision to proceed may raise significant concerns for future executions involving medically vulnerable inmates.