Ralph Baze (born July 1, 1955) is a convicted

murder Murder is the unlawful killing of another human without justification (jurisprudence), justification or valid excuse (legal), excuse, especially the unlawful killing of another human with malice aforethought. ("The killing of another person wit ...

er who

sued - A lawsuit is a proceeding by a party or parties against another in the civil court of law. The archaic term "suit in law" is found in only a small number of laws still in effect today. The term "lawsuit" is used in reference to a civil acti ...

the

Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia to ...

State Department of Corrections along with fellow inmate Thomas Clyde Bowling Jr. to challenge their impending

execution Capital punishment, also known as the death penalty, is the state-sanctioned practice of deliberately killing a person as a punishment for an actual or supposed crime, usually following an authorized, rule-governed process to conclude that ...

. He and Bowling sued on the grounds that

execution by lethal injection Lethal injection is the practice of injecting one or more drugs into a person (typically a barbiturate, Neuromuscular-blocking drug, paralytic, and potassium chloride, potassium solution) for the express purpose of causing rapid death. The main ...

using the "cocktail" prescribed by Kentucky law constitutes

cruel and unusual punishment Cruel and unusual punishment is a phrase in common law describing punishment that is considered unacceptable due to the suffering, pain, or humiliation it inflicts on the person subjected to the sanction. The precise definition varies by jurisd ...

in violation of the 8th Amendment. Baze's court case was '' Baze v. Rees''. Baze had been scheduled for execution on 25 September 2007 but, on 12 September, was issued a stay of execution by the

Kentucky Supreme Court The Kentucky Supreme Court was created by a 1975 constitutional amendment and is the state supreme court of the U.S. state of Kentucky. Prior to that the Kentucky Court of Appeals was the only appellate court in Kentucky. The Kentucky Court of ...

. The

United States Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that involve a point o ...

agreed to hear his

appeal In law, an appeal is the process in which cases are reviewed by a higher authority, where parties request a formal change to an official decision. Appeals function both as a process for error correction as well as a process of clarifying and ...

. On April 16, 2008 the Court affirmed the Kentucky Supreme Court's decision that the injection protocol does not violate the Eighth Amendment. Baze does not dispute that he shot and killed

Powell County, Kentucky Powell County is a county located in the U.S. Commonwealth of Kentucky. As of the 2020 census, the population was 13,129. Its county seat is Stanton. The county was formed January 7, 1852, by Kentucky Governor Lazarus W. Powell from parts of ...

Sheriff A sheriff is a government official, with varying duties, existing in some countries with historical ties to England where the office originated. There is an analogous, although independently developed, office in Iceland that is commonly transla ...

Steve Bennett and

Deputy Deputy or depute may refer to: * Steward (office) * Khalifa, an Arabic title that can signify "deputy" * Deputy (legislator), a legislator in many countries and regions, including: ** A member of a Chamber of Deputies, for example in Italy, Spai ...

Arthur Briscoe in 1992 as they attempted to serve an

arrest warrant An arrest warrant is a warrant issued by a judge or magistrate on behalf of the state, which authorizes the arrest and detention of an individual, or the search and seizure of an individual's property. Canada Arrest warrants are issued by a j ...

on him, but claims that the shootings were

self-defense Self-defense (self-defence primarily in Commonwealth English) is a countermeasure that involves defending the health and well-being of oneself from harm. The use of the right of self-defense as a legal justification for the use of force in ...

. Baze is incarcerated on death row in

Kentucky State Penitentiary The Kentucky State Penitentiary (KSP), also known as the "Castle on the Cumberland," is a maximum security and supermax prison with capacity for 856 prisoners located in Eddyville, Kentucky on Lake Barkley on the Cumberland River, about fro ...

Eddyville, Kentucky Eddyville is a home rule-class city in and the county seat of Lyon County, Kentucky, United States. The population was 2,554 at the 2010 census, up from 2,350 in 2000. The Kentucky State Penitentiary is located at Eddyville. The town is cons ...

References

Ky. Inmate Challenges Execution Method
Brett Barrouquere,

Associated Press The Associated Press (AP) is an American non-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association. It produces news reports that are distributed to its members, U.S. newspa ...

, 25 September 2007
Ralph Baze granted stay of execution
Brett Barrouquere

Courier-Journal ''The Courier-Journal'', also known as the ''Louisville Courier Journal'' (and informally ''The C-J'' or ''The Courier''), is the highest circulation newspaper in Kentucky. It is owned by Gannett and billed as "Part of the ''USA Today'' Net ...

, 12 September 2007 {{DEFAULTSORT:Baze, Ralph American people convicted of murder American prisoners sentenced to death Prisoners sentenced to death by Kentucky People convicted of murder by Kentucky 1955 births 1992 murders in the United States Living people American people convicted of murdering police officers

See also

References