Missouri has set an execution date of October 1st for Russell Bucklew, who was convicted in the 1996 murder of Michael Sanders. Bucklew had appealed his case all the way to the Supreme Court because he has a rare blood disease that increases the risk of a botched lethal injection and has requested gassing (which is allowed in Missouri). But in one of the Supreme Court's first rulings with Justice Gorsuch newly on the bench, they denied the request in a 5-4 vote.

The Court conceded that Bucklew may well suffer under lethal injection, but found “no basis to conclude that Bucklew’s risk of severe pain would be substantially reduced by use of nitrogen hypoxia instead.” But no protocol exists for execution by nitrogen hypoxia and no state has ever tried it. Gorsuch wrote the decision, saying the Constitution “does not guarantee a prisoner a painless death.”

We, the undersigned, ask that you do everything within your power to stop this execution, including issuing a stay, and seeking a path to clemency in the case.