US Carries Out First Federal Execution In 17 Years

Despite resistance from civil liberties groups and liberal journalists (which is ironic, considering that he was a white supremacist), the US has successfully executed convicted murderer Daniel Lee after the Supreme Court cleared the way overnight, according to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons spokeswoman.

Lee was pronounced dead at 0807ET, the government said.

The execution had been held up by a US District Court in Washington, which on Monday ordered the DoJ to delay four executions scheduled for July and August. That order was later affirmed by an appellate court.

Daniel Lee

But the Trump Administration immediately appealed to a higher court to ask that the execution move forward.

But at 0210ET, with fewer than seven hours remaining before Lee’s execution was due to take place at the US Penitentiary in Terre Haute, Indiana, the Supreme Court stepped in and, in a 5-4 vote, cleared the way for federal executions to resume. Lee, 47, is a one-eyed white supremacist who has maintained his innocence.

Before he was executed by lethal injection, Le said: “I didn’t do it. I’ve made a lot of mistakes in my life, but I’m not a murderer…you’re killing an innocent man.”