On Oct. 4, 2013, the American Civil Liberties Union of Missouri Foundation (ACLU-MO) filed a lawsuit against the Missouri Department of Corrections (DOC) for failing to comply with a Sunshine Law request for records about Missouri’s supply of the drug propofol. This is the drug that the state plans to use in executions slated for Oct. 23 and Nov. 20.
On Oct. 8, the Department of Corrections submitted the first four PDFs of requested information and sent a second batch of documents by certified mail on Oct. 11.
“Missouri law requires the government to respond to public-record requests within three business days,” says Tony Rothert, the ACLU-MO’s legal director. “It has now been more than five weeks without the records, without communication, and without responding to phone calls.”
“There is serious doubt that the Missouri Department of Corrections lawfully or ethically possesses the drug it plans to use to end a life later this month,” said Jeffrey A. Mittman, executive director of the ACLU of Missouri. “The public has a right to know the details of how the state came into possession of this highly controlled drug. Propofol’s makers have gone to great lengths to ensure their drug is not used for executions, so the DOC’s plan to do so may jeopardize the U.S. supply of the drug, which is widely used as a safe and effective anesthetic.”