Missouri carried out the pandemic era’s first execution in the U.S., after the Supreme Court denied a prisoner’s stay bid that claimed the virus prevented his legal team from gathering evidence that he said could undercut his 2006 murder conviction.
The high court rejected Walter Barton’s plea late Tuesday afternoon. The execution went ahead as planned, and he was pronounced dead at 6:10 p.m. local time.
Other states have postponed executions in light of virus concerns.
The justices denied Barton’s stay request and rejected his certiorari petition without any public dissent.
In a filing Monday, Barton had told the court ...
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