Judge Halts All Ohio Executions

A federal judge Wednesday ordered a three-month moratorium on all executions in Ohio following a botched execution earlier this year. On Jan. 16, Dennis McGuire gasped, choked, and struggled for 10 minutes before dying while two drugs were being administered for lethal injection. Last month, Ohio announced it would use the same drugs but in higher doses. District Judge Gregory L. Frost said that a new protocol isn't ready to be used and ordered lawyers representing death-row inmates and the state to “work together to coordinate efforts so that the court can set necessary deadlines following expiration of the stay.”