NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WOKI / WVLT) — Defense attorneys for death row inmate Tony Carruthers are asking Governor Bill Lee to pause all executions in Tennessee following a failed lethal injection attempt they call “tortured” and “botched.”
Carruthers, convicted of a 1996 triple murder and kidnapping in South Memphis, was scheduled to be executed on May 21. The execution was called off after officials were unable to successfully establish the IV lines required under state protocol.
Attorneys with the American Civil Liberties Union and the Federal Public Defender’s Office say witnesses heard Carruthers cry out in pain while personnel attempted multiple times to insert a line. They allege he suffered numerous punctures as staff struggled to comply with the protocol.
The Tennessee Department of Correction adopted a revised lethal injection procedure in 2025 after earlier problems prompted an investigation ordered by Governor Lee. However, attorneys argue the updated protocol lacks clear standards for training, qualifications, and oversight.
Litigation over the current procedure is ongoing in Davidson County Chancery Court.
Carruthers’ attorneys say they will formally urge the governor to halt all executions until those legal challenges are resolved, citing concerns over staff competency and the risk of further failed procedures.
