The Supreme Court has sided with a Georgia death row inmate who wants to die by firing squad.
The inmate challenged the state’s lethal injection protocol and sought to die by firing squad, which is currently not a method authorized in the state.
The Justices said the inmate could challenge it under a federal civil rights law. CNN reported that the court said the law allows those who feel their Constitutional rights were violated to seek remedies.
The decision could make it easier for inmates to challenge their potential execution method.
Justice Elena Kagan wrote the opinion, voted 5-4, with Justice Amy Coney Barrett penning the dissent and joined by Justices Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito, and Neil Gorsuch.
"This broadly authorizes suit against state officials for the deprivation of any rights secured by the Constitution," Kagan said about the law, Section 1983, at issue.
Forbes reported that this would mark the first execution by firing squad in the U.S. since 2010.
