Opinion ID: 2283707
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: this action stems from proceedings in a declaratory judgment action pending in the franklin circuit court.

Text: The underlying action started in the Franklin Circuit Court when certain death-row inmates filed a declaratory judgment action challenging Kentucky's lethal injection protocol on the basis that the then-existing protocol was not properly adopted as an administrative regulation under the Kentucky Administrative Procedures Act. After this Court ruled that the Department of Corrections was required to promulgate most portions of the lethal injection protocol as an administrative regulation [2] and Corrections established the protocol by administrative regulation, [3] the Franklin Circuit Court granted the inmates leave to reopen the case and amend their declaratory judgment petition to incorporate the argument that the regulation did not comply with the requirements of Kentucky Revised Statute (KRS) Chapter 13A, the statutory chapter concerning administrative regulations. The Franklin Circuit Court also allowed another death-row inmate, Gregory L. Wilson, who had not been an original party, to intervene in the reopened and amended declaratory judgment action. Wilson's death sentence was imposed by the Kenton Circuit Court; [4] and he moved to intervene in the Franklin Circuit Court proceeding after the Governor signed a warrant on August 25, 2010, for his execution to take place on September 16, 2010. The Kenton Circuit Court had refused to stay the execution on September 2, 2010. [5] Wilson sought injunctive relief from the Franklin Circuit Court, asking that court to stay or enjoin the implementation of the death warrant against him. The Franklin Circuit Court entered a written order, entitled Temporary Injunction Under CR 65.04, in which it granted Wilson's motion for injunctive relief and a stay of any implementation of the death warrant signed in his case by the Governor. And the court restrained and enjoined the Commonwealth from taking any steps to implement the administrative regulations at issue in this action (501 KAR Chapter 16), or to otherwise execute the Governor's death warrant, until the entry of a final judgment in this action, or until further orders of this Court entered after adequate notice and a hearing. The Franklin Circuit Court explained its reasoning for granting Wilson injunctive relief, stating there are at least two substantial questions of law regarding the validity of the administrative regulations that require the [Franklin Circuit Court] to issue an injunction to preserve the status quo until the entry of a final judgment. First, the circuit court perceived an apparent conflict between the regulations, which the circuit court interpreted to require a combination of drugs in administering lethal injections, [6] and KRS 431.220, which the circuit court interpreted to allow for use of either a single drug or a combination of drugs in administering lethal injections. [7] Second, the circuit court found a lack of any provision in the regulations prohibiting the execution of insane or mentally retarded inmates and lack of adequate safeguards in the regulations to prevent the execution of insane or mentally retarded inmates, creating constitutional and statutory violations. [8] Petitioners contend that these two issues were not raised by the parties to the declaratory judgment action but were improperly interjected into the action by the Franklin Circuit Court on its own motion.