Tennessee grants a one-year reprieve for Tony Carruthers after execution halted

Tennessee’s governor granted a one-year stay of execution for Tony Carruthers after his lethal injection was halted for more than an hour when officials could not locate a suitable vein; a primary IV line was found but a backup line and a central line could not be secured. Carruthers, 57, was sentenced to death in 1994 for kidnapping and murdering three Memphis residents, a conviction largely based on testimony rather than physical evidence. His lawyers had sought stays in federal court and the Tennessee Supreme Court, arguing the ongoing IV attempts amounted to cruel and unusual punishment. The reprieve comes amid a nationwide spike in executions, including Florida’s 19 in 2025, as Tennessee resumes executions after a pause tied to drug-testing concerns.