Tony Carruthers, a 57-year-old death row inmate in Tennessee, survived his scheduled execution Thursday after correctional officers failed to establish an intravenous line for lethal drugs during more than an hour of attempts that left him groaning and bleeding from multiple puncture sites, according to his attorney.
Background
Carruthers has spent three decades on Tennessee's death row following his 1994 conviction for the kidnappings and murders of Marcellos Anderson; his mother, Delois Anderson; and Frederick Tucker. Throughout his incarceration, Carruthers has maintained his innocence in the triple homicide. His defense team has pushed for post-conviction DNA testing on evidence from the crime scene, arguing that unmatched fingerprints and genetic material have never been compared to an alternative suspect identified by Carruthers' co-defendant more than a decade ago. The state denied that motion for forensic analysis, court filings show.
The ACLU contends that Carruthers' conviction rested primarily on testimonies from paid jailhouse informants, with no physical evidence directly connecting him to the killings. Advocates have repeatedly called on Gov. Bill Lee to halt the execution so his legal team could more thoroughly evaluate potentially exculpatory DNA evidence.
The Attempted Execution
According to attorney Maria DeLiberato, who spoke with CBS News through text messages provided by the ACLU, correctional officers attempted three times to establish IV access in Carruthers' arms and feet before turning to a central line near his neck. DeLiberato described the scene as torture.
"When they tried to do the central line, they put a shot of lidocaine in his chest and he told them he could still feel the puncture and they did the puncture anyway," DeLiberato wrote. She said Carruthers was groaning and bleeding from his attempted injection sites during the prolonged procedure.
Carruthers' defense team filed an emergency motion with a Tennessee district court judge, alleging that the repeated IV attempts constituted cruel and unusual punishment in violation of constitutional rights. The judge denied that request, finding that the defense had not met its burden to demonstrate the state's actions were constitutionally impermissible.
Despite the failed lethal injection attempt, Gov. Bill Lee upheld Carruthers' death sentence in a statement responding to his clemency petition. However, the governor issued a reprieve pausing execution proceedings. Whether that pause is temporary or permanent remained unclear as of Thursday evening, according to an ACLU spokesperson.
Key Takeaways
- Tony Carruthers was sentenced to death for the 1994 murders of Marcellos Anderson, Delois Anderson, and Frederick Tucker in Tennessee
- Officers spent over an hour attempting to establish IV access before halting the execution attempt; defense attorney described it as torture
- Carruthers has maintained his innocence for 30 years and his team seeks DNA testing they say could exonerate him
- A district court judge denied the defense team's emergency motion to stop the execution on constitutional grounds
- Gov. Bill Lee issued a reprieve but upheld the death sentence; duration of the pause remains uncertain
What's Next
It is unclear whether Tennessee will schedule another execution date for Carruthers or grant additional time for his legal team to pursue post-conviction DNA testing. The ACLU and Carruthers' defense attorneys, including Capital Punishment Project director Cassy Stubbs, have called on state leadership to address what they characterize as a grave injustice compounded by the botched execution attempt. Advocates are expected to continue pressing for forensic analysis of unmatched evidence from the 1994 crime scene that could potentially identify an alternative perpetrator.