Alabama Wants to Kill Jimi Barber
AtlanticJul 17, 2023
Alabama is set to execute its first inmate since Gov. Kay Ivey paused the practice to conduct an internal review after two lethal injections were canceled due to difficulties inserting IVs. James Barber is scheduled to receive the lethal injection Thursday night.
The 64-year-old Barber has been on death row for nearly two decades for the 2001 robbery and murder of 75-year-old Dorothy Epps. The felon, who knew Epps’ daughter, killed the woman with a claw hammer before fleeing with her purse.
After multiple botched attempts to execute inmates, Alabama is looking to redeem itself by killing James Barber despite clear questions about the state’s protocols. The death penalty is a horrendous stain on America as is, but adding the horror of a potentially botched injection is appalling.
Capital punishment is reserved for the most heinous crimes, such as the one committed by James Barber. Gov. Ivey and Alabama authorities have conducted a thorough review of the issues that used to plague the lethal injection methods of the state and implemented the appropriate reforms. There's no reason to delay this justice.
There's a 50% chance that capital punishment will be legal in at least 38.1% of US states by 2035, according to the Metaculus prediction community.