Court Dismisses Appeal by Killer Facing Death Penalty
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SAN FRANCISCO — A federal appeals court Saturday declined to rehear an appeal from condemned killer Donald Beardslee, moving him a step closer to becoming the 11th person executed in California since it reinstated the death penalty.
Beardslee had challenged the state’s method of execution by lethal injection, saying it constituted cruel and unusual punishment and would violate his free speech rights because he would not be able to scream in pain.
An 11-judge panel from the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals dismissed his case. The decision came a day after a three-judge panel ruled against him.
Beardslee’s attorneys will now ask the U.S. Supreme Court to stay the execution, scheduled for 12:01 a.m. Wednesday.
Beardslee, 61, was convicted of killing two Northern California women in 1981.
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