501 KAR 16:330. Lethal injection protocol.

      RELATES TO: KRS 196.030, 196.070, 196.180, 431.213-431.270

      STATUTORY AUTHORITY: KRS 196.035, 197.020, 431.218, 431.220, 431.224, 431.240, 431.250, 431.260, 431.270

      NECESSITY, FUNCTION, AND CONFORMITY: KRS 196.035 and 197.020 authorize the Justice and Public Safety Cabinet and Department of Corrections to promulgate administrative regulations necessary and suitable for the proper administration of the Cabinet or any of its divisions. KRS 431.220 establishes requirements for the execution of the death penalty. This administrative regulation establishes the protocol for execution by lethal injection.

      Section 1. Procurement, Storage, and Accountability of Chemicals. (1) Upon receipt of an execution order, the warden shall check the supply of chemicals and their expiration dates. If additional chemicals are needed, the warden shall place an order to obtain the necessary chemicals for an execution by lethal injection.

      (2) The warden shall transport the chemicals from the point of procurement and place them in a secured area of the penitentiary in locked containers. Pancuronium bromide shall be stored separately from the other chemicals in its own locked container, which shall be refrigerated at a temperature of at least forty (40) degrees Fahrenheit. The warden shall maintain control of the keys to the secured areas and containers at all times. A duplicate set of keys shall not be made.

      (3) A log shall be maintained in the storage containers which shall record:

      (a) New supplies of chemicals received and added to inventory;

      (b) Chemicals removed for use;

      (c) Disposal of chemicals due to expiration; and

      (d) Any other reason that a chemical is removed or deducted from inventory.

      Section 2. Preliminary Steps. (1) The penitentiary shall have a minimum of two (2) phone lines available for communication with the courts and counsel on the day of execution. The warden shall determine if necessary phone lines are operational prior to the execution.

      (2) If the condemned person is to be executed by lethal injection:

      (a) If male, his chest shall be shaved by a designated member of the execution team for heart monitor leads on the day of execution; and

      (b) The IV team shall complete an examination of the condemned person’s veins within twenty-four (24) hours prior to the execution to determine possible locations of the IV sites.

      (3) On the day of execution the warden shall provide to the IV team sufficient amounts of each chemical listed in Section 3 of this administrative regulation to prepare two (2) complete sets of syringes. One (1) set shall serve as the primary set of syringes. The other set of syringes shall be a back-up set.

      (4) At the execution building, each chemical shall be prepared in accordance with the manufacturer's instructions and drawn into the two (2) sets of syringes by one (1) member of the IV team designated by the warden. The other member of the IV team shall observe preparation of the chemicals and verify that the instructions and procedures have been carried out correctly.

      (5) Any syringes that are loaded with lethal injection chemicals that are not used during the execution shall:

      (a) Not be used;

      (b) Be returned to the warden; and

      (c) Be destroyed and documented in the log maintained in accordance with Section 1(3) of this administrative regulation.

      (6) Any unused chemicals that were not mixed in preparation of the lethal injection shall be:

      (a) Returned to the warden;

      (b) Locked in the storage container; and

      (c) Documented in the log maintained in accordance with Section 1(3) of this administrative regulation.

      (7) A member of the IV team shall determine the appropriate size needle based on the examination of the condemned person's veins within the five (5) hours prior to the execution.

      (8) The warden shall order the condemned person escorted to the execution chamber and strapped to the gurney.

      (9) The IV team shall run the IV lines to the condemned person by the following:

      (a) Site and insert one (1) primary IV line; and

      (b) Site and insert one (1) backup IV line.

      (10) The location of the IV sites on the body of the condemned person shall be determined by the IV team members. The insertion site of preference shall be the following order:

      (a) Arms;

      (b) Hands;

      (c) Ankles; or

      (d) Feet.

      (11) To best ensure that a needle is inserted properly into a vein, the IV team members shall look for the presence of blood in the valve of the sited needle.

      (12) If the IV team cannot secure two (2) IV sites within one (1) hour, the Commissioner shall contact the Governor’s Office and request that the execution be scheduled for a later date.

      (13) If the IV team is able to establish the two IV lines, the team shall start a saline flow.

      (14) The execution team shall:

      (a) Securely connect the electrodes of the cardiac monitor to the condemned person; and

      (b) Ensure the equipment is functioning.

      (15) Counsel assigned by the cabinet and counsel assigned by the office of the Attorney General shall be asked whether any stays, orders, pardons, or commutations of sentence have been received.

      (16) The viewing curtain shall be opened.

      (17) The warden shall announce the execution to the witnesses.

      (18) The warden shall ask the condemned person if he wants to make a final statement. If a statement is made by the condemned person, it shall be limited to two (2) minutes. The witnesses shall be allowed to hear the condemned person’s statement.

      (19) The warden shall order the execution to proceed.

      Section 3. Sequence of Chemicals. (1) At the warden’s order to proceed, a designated execution team member shall begin a rapid flow of lethal chemicals in the following sequence:

      (a) Three (3) gm of Sodium Thiopental;

      (b) Twenty-five (25) milligrams of Saline;

      (c) Fifty (50) milligrams of Pancuronium Bromide;

      (d) Twenty-five (25) milligrams of Saline;

      (e) 240 milliequivalents of Potassium Chloride; and

      (f) Twenty-five (25) milligrams of Saline.

      (2) If it appears to the warden based on his visual inspection that the condemned person is not unconscious within sixty (60) seconds of his command to proceed, the warden shall stop the flow of Sodium Thiopental in the primary site and order that the backup IV be used with a new flow of Sodium Thiopental and the other chemicals listed in subsection (1) of this section.

      (3) If it appears to the warden based on his visual inspection that the condemned person is unconscious after the injection of Sodium Thiopental, the warden shall order the designated team member to continue the injections of the other chemicals listed in subsection (1) of this section through the primary IV.

      (4) A designated execution team member shall start a stopwatch once the lethal injections are complete.

      (5) A designated execution team member shall:

      (a) Observe the heart monitor; and

      (b) Advise the coroner and physician when electrical activity of the heart has ceased as indicated by a flat line on the heart monitor.

      (6) The viewing curtain shall be drawn before the:

      (a) Coroner enters the chamber to declare death; and

      (b) Physician enters the chamber to certify the cause of death.

      (7) The warden shall order an additional set of lethal chemicals to be administered if the:

      (a) Heart monitor does not indicate a flat line after ten (10) minutes;

      (b) Coroner is not able to declare death; and

      (c) Physician unable to certify the cause of death during the ten (10) minute period.

      (8) The process established in subsection (1) of this section shall continue until death has occurred.

      (9) During the execution by lethal injection the warden and deputy warden shall watch the primary iv site for failure, leakage, the catheter coming out of a vein, or any other problem. In the event that an IV fails, leaks, if the catheter comes out of the vein, or any other problem arises, the execution team shall be instructed to switch to the backup IV.

      Section 4. Post Lethal Injection Steps. (1) If the Coroner declares death, the warden shall be informed.

      (2) The warden shall announce the completion of the execution to the witnesses. The viewing curtain shall be open during the warden’s announcement.

      (3) The witnesses shall be escorted out of the witness room.

      Section 5. Stabilization Procedure. (1) Before an execution commences:

      (a) The warden shall arrange for an ambulance and staff to be present on penitentiary property during the execution; and

      (b) A medical crash cart and defibrillator shall be located in the execution building.

      (2) If at any time during the execution process the Governor grants a pardon or commutes the sentence of the condemned person or if a court of competent jurisdiction issues a stay after an execution has commenced:

      (a) The execution team shall stop the execution; and

      (b) The medical staff on site shall attempt to stabilize the condemned person with the equipment and personnel listed in subsection (1) of this section.

      Section 6. Volunteer. (1) If a condemned person, who is a volunteer, tells department staff that he does not wish to continue with the execution process, the staff shall tell the warden.

      (2) If the execution is in process:

      (a) The execution team shall stop the execution; and

      (b) If any of the chemicals have been administered, the medical staff on site shall attempt to stabilize the condemned person with the equipment and personnel listed in Section 5(1) of this administrative regulation.

      (3) The warden shall allow the condemned person to contact his attorney.

      (4) The warden shall notify the commissioner.

      (5) The commissioner shall notify the Governor’s Office or court issuing the mandate. (36 Ky.R. 1566; Am. 2096-M; 2042-A; eff. 5-7-2010.)