The Associated Press
FLORENCE, Ariz. — Execution witnesses will be allowed to see the full lethal injection process for the first time in Arizona as the state prepares to put to death its fourth condemned inmate this year.
Until Wednesday’s scheduled execution, news media and victims’ family members entered the death chamber after the inmate had been injected and covered with a sheet up to his chest or neck.
The state opened the process after a federal judge sided with The Associated Press and other news organizations in Idaho to allow full viewing access for witnesses. The decision affected several Western states.
Arizona is set to execute Samuel Villegas Lopez for the rape and murder of a 59-year-old woman in 1986.