NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) — State executions should resume in May after the Tennessee Department of Correction (TDOC) completed its multi-year revision of the state's lethal injection protocol.
Gov. Bill Lee ordered an independent review of Tennessee's lethal injection procedures and executions have been paused across the state since spring 2022. TDOC Commissioner Frank Strada began developing a revised execution protocol after his appointment in January 2023, which was developed in consultation with the Tennessee Attorney General's Office.
“I am confident the lethal injection process can proceed in compliance with departmental policy and state laws,” Strada said.
Under the new execution protocol, Tennessee will utilize the single drug pentobarbital. Last month, the U.S. Attorney General told the director of the Federal Bureau of Prisons to stop using pentobarbital in executions because it's unclear if the drug causes unnecessary pain and suffering.
The TDOC announced the lethal injection protocol in Dec. 2024. Following Monday's announcement that executions would resume, TDOC shared the following four orders to reset execution dates with News 2:
- Oscar Smith, who was found guilty of killing his estranged wife Judith in 1989, has a new execution date of May 22, 2025
- Byron Black, who was convicted of three counts of first-degree murder in connection with the homicides of Angela Clay and her two daughters, has a new execution date of Aug. 5, 2025
- Donald Middlebrooks, who was convicted for the 1987 murder of Kerrick Majors, has a new execution date of Sept. 24, 2025
- Harold Nichols, who was convicted of rape and first-degree murder in the death of 21-year-old Karen Pulley, has a new execution date of Dec. 11, 2025