News Release "Death Penalty Coalition Calls for Clear Answers from DOC About Availability of Lethal Injection Drugs", 2016 February 17

Online content

Fullscreen 
NEWS RELEASE

For immediate release:

Feb. 17, 2016

For more information, contact:
Michael Stone

(434) 960-7779
michael@vadp.org

Death Penalty Coalition Calls for Clear Answers
from DOC About Availability of Lethal Injection Drugs

The following statement is being released on behalf of the non-partisan Virginia
Death Penalty Coalition:

“The Virginia Department of Corrections has issued contradictory statements about
the availability of lethal injection drugs for the scheduled execution on March 16, 2016.

“The DOC acknowledges that it has two doses of the sedative pentobarbital used to
render an inmate unconscious. The DOC strongly defended this drug as appropriate to
execute Alfredo Prieto on October 1, 2015, and used only one dose in that execution.

“At the same time, the DOC asserts that it does not have the sedative drug needed to
carry out an execution by lethal injection, but refuses to answer why the two doses on hand
are insufficient because of potential litigation. According to the DOC, it has no idea how it
will carry out executions in the future.

“However, the DOC Director has the authority to amend the lethal injection protocol
to accommodate the existing stock of drugs in its possession to carry out executions.

“The DOC’s claim that it lacks drugs needed for lethal injections has been used by
others to pressure legislators to change the default execution method from lethal injection
to the electric chair, which is widely viewed as an outdated, barbaric form of execution. If
this bill (HB 815) is approved, Virginia would be just one of two states in the country that
use the chair as their default method of execution. It would also grant unfettered authority
to the DOC Director to determine how executions are carried out.

“The General Assembly should reject HB 815 which would allow the DOC to decide
without scrutiny or supervision the manner of execution in Virginia. Citizens have a right
to know how the death penalty is carried out in Virginia. It is long past time for the DOC to
issue a clear and unambiguous statement regarding the method, if any, it intends to use to
carry out future executions.”

Hae

The Virginia Death Penalty Coalition is comprised of Virginians for Alternatives to the
Death Penalty, the ACLU of Virginia and the Virginia Catholic Conference.

Metadata

Resource Type:
Document
Rights:
Image for license or rights statement.
CC BY-NC-SA 4.0
Date Uploaded:
December 29, 2025

Using these materials

Access:
The archives are open to the public and anyone is welcome to visit and view the collections.
Collection restrictions:
Access to this collection is unrestricted with the exception of select items noted in Series 5.
Collection terms of access:
This page may contain links to digital objects. Access to these images and the technical capacity to download them does not imply permission for re-use. Digital objects may be used freely for personal reference use, referred to, or linked to from other web sites. Researchers do not have permission to publish or disseminate material from these collections without permission from an archivist and/or the copyright holder. The researcher assumes full responsibility for conforming to the laws of copyright. Some materials in these collections may be protected by the U.S. Copyright Law (Title 17, U.S.C.) and/or by the copyright or neighboring-rights laws of other nations. More information about U.S. Copyright is provided by the Copyright Office. Additionally, re-use may be restricted by terms of University Libraries gift or purchase agreements, donor restrictions, privacy and publicity rights, licensing and trademarks. The Department of Special Collections and Archives is eager to hear from any copyright owners who are not properly identified so that appropriate information may be provided in the future.

About the Archives

Access options

Ask an Archivist

Ask a question or schedule an individualized meeting to discuss archival materials and potential research needs.

Ask a Question Book a Meet

Schedule a Visit

Archival materials can be viewed in-person in our reading room. We recommend making an appointment to ensure materials are available when you arrive.

Schedule a Visit Hours