US Supreme Court stays Virginia lethal injection execution News
US Supreme Court stays Virginia lethal injection execution

[JURIST] The US Supreme Court [official website] on Wednesday afternoon issued an order [DOC text] staying the execution of Virginia death row inmate Christopher Scott Emmett [advocacy profile], who had been scheduled to be put to death at 9 PM ET. The Court stayed the execution "pending final disposition of the appeal by the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit or further order of this Court." Emmett has been convicted of capital murder and robbery.

The Supreme Court has agreed to consider Baze v. Rees [docket; cert. petition, PDF], a case challenging lethal injection as unconstitutional under the Eighth Amendment. Since the Court granted certiorari, several states have stayed executions pending the outcome of that case, including a Nevada court, which on Monday issued a stay of all executions in the state [JURIST report]. Reuters has more. The Washington Post has additional coverage.

THIS DAY @ LAW

UN Security Council called for Israeli withdrawal from territories occupied in Six Days' War

On November 22, 1967, the UN Security Council called for Israeli withdrawal from territories occupied during the Six Days' War, and for respect of the right of all States in the area to "live in peace within secure and recognized boundaries." Read Resolution 242, which remains a cornerstone of efforts to achieve peace in the Middle East.

President Kennedy assassinated, VP Lyndon Johnson sworn inin

On November 22, 1963, President John F. Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas, Texas. Later that day, Vice-President Lyndon Johnson was sworn in as the 36th President of the United States. Earl Warren, the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, was later tasked with leading a commission to investigate the assassination. President Johnson received the final report of the Warren Commission on September 24, 1964. Read the Warren Commission Report.