Supreme Court Upholds Lethal Injection

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled today in favor of Kentucky's use of lethal injection, which has come under scrutiny with opponents arguing that this particular method can cause severe pain if the first round of injections, a paralytic, does not take hold. The court found that the procedure fails to constitute cruel and unusual punishment. Dozens of other states who use a similar method have held off on executions since September.

A CNN poll in November 2007 found 70 percent of Americans in favor of the death penalty by lethal injection. Public opinion on capital punishment has fluctuated since the 1970s, but majorities have been consistently in favor of it. Yet responses to whether there should be a moratorium on the death penalty vary with question wording. Half of Americans say the death penalty is not imposed enough, but most also believe that at least one innocent person has been sentenced to death in the past five years.