Nashville News Blog

The ruling by the U.S. District Court in Nashville that supported convicted murderer Edward Jerome Harbison's contention that Tennessee's method of lethal injection violated the Eighth Amendment has been vacated by the 6th Circuit, the News Sentinel reported.

The U.S. Supreme Court had ruled in April that Kentucky's lethal injection method, which is similar to Tennessee's, was constitutional. The court's deliberation didn't stop Tennessee from executing convicted double-murderer Steve Henley earlier this year. In his final days, Henley appealed to the 6th Circuit for a stay based on the U.S. Supreme Court's pending decision -- which came down some two months after his execution -- but the court declined.

Looks like it wouldn't have made a difference for Henley anyway.