Method of execution; Director of DOC certifies that lethal injection isn't available, electrocution. (SB607)

The ACLU of Virginia opposes this bill because, by allowing the electric chair to become the default method of execution if the Commonwealth cannot secure lethal injection drugs, it doubles down on the Commonwealth’s embrace of the electric chair. Instead of focusing on the method of execution, the General Assembly should be focused on implementing the recommendations outlined in the American Bar Association’s report on the fairness and accuracy of Virginia’s death penalty process. The report found “several areas of concern,” extending from the law enforcement identification and interrogation process at the beginning to the post conviction process at the end. It is unconscionable that we are debating methods of execution when there is strong evidence that calls into question the basic fairness and accuracy of Virginia’s death penalty process.