04 December 2010 :

The Ohio Supreme Court rejected a suit filed by attorneys representing Romell Broom that be removed from Death Row because the state tried unsuccessfully to execute him 15 months ago. Without comment, the court unanimously turned down the request by attorneys Timothy F. Sweeney and  S. Adele Shank. The suit contended that Broom's constitutional rights were violated and that he suffered "unnecessary pain, suffering and distress" when attempts to execute him on Sept. 15, 2009 (see), were aborted after two hours at the order of Gov. Ted Strickland. A prison medical team tried in vain for two tense hours to attach IV lines. Broom, 54, black, was jabbed 18 times in the arms and legs with injection needles before a prison official recommended that the procedure be halted. Broom's attorneys argued the state did not have properly trained personnel on the execution team, failed to follow its own protocols, and had no backup plan. "It was a form of torture that exposed Broom to the prospect of a slow, lingering death, not the quick and painless one he was promised and to which he was constitutionally entitled," the lawsuit said. His attorneys asked that his death sentence be overturned and that Broom be released from Death Row and sent to the general prison population. A new execution date has not been scheduled for Broom. He is under a death sentence for abducting and murdering Tryna Middleton on Sept. 21, 1984. (see also Sept. 18 and 22, and Dec. 9, 2009).