COLUMBUS (AP) — A court filing says Ohio asked seven other states for a lethal injection drug in an unsuccessful attempt to continue carrying out executions.
The filing in a federal appeals court last week says the state prisons agency also tried in vain to obtain the active ingredient in the drug, pentobarbital, in hopes of having a compounded version made.
State attorneys cited the information to explain why reverting to pentobarbital is not an option.
The state is appealing a federal judge’s ruling last month rejecting the state’s current three-drug execution method.
The filing says Ohio asked Alabama, Arizona, Florida, Georgia, Missouri, Texas and Virginia for pentobarbital.
The 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Cincinnati has scheduled arguments for Feb. 21.