OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Gov. Mary Fallin has granted an Oklahoma death-row inmate a one-week stay of execution, saying the Oklahoma Supreme Court overstepped its authority when it issued a separate stay of execution on Monday.
Fallin issued an executive order on Tuesday delaying the execution of Clayton Lockett until April 29. In her order, Fallin claims the stay ordered by the state's high court is "outside the constitutional authority of that body."
The stay granted by the Oklahoma Supreme Court on Monday also canceled the execution of inmate Charles Warner. The two inmates are challenging the secrecy protocol surrounding the source of Oklahoma's lethal injection drugs.
Republican Attorney General Scott Pruitt is fighting the inmates' attempt to delay their execution. He maintains the state can keep secret the source of the drugs.