How a shortage of lethal injection drugs put the death penalty before the Supreme Court

The Supreme Court on Monday decided that Oklahoma may continue the use of the controversial sedative midazolam for lethal injections — even after the drug was linked to several botched executions in 2014.

The Supreme Court case dealt with the botched execution of Clayton Lockett in Oklahoma. The Lockett execution, which took 43 minutes after experimental lethal injection drugs were administered, led four inmates — one of whom was executed before the Supreme Court decided the issue — to file a lawsuit challenging Oklahoma's lethal injection protocol. The Supreme Court ultimately decided the botched execution, along with other evidence, wasn't adequate proof that midazolam was cruel and unusual punishment.