Oklahoma used wrong drug labels during recent executions

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Oklahoma prison officials have used the wrong drug labels during at least three recent executions. Those details emerged on Friday during a federal court hearing where attorneys for 28 death row inmates were challenging the state’s three-drug method as unconstitutional.

Prison officials testified that labels misidentifying the drugs were used inside the death chamber.

Department of Corrections Director Scott Crow and his chief of operations, Justin Farris, testified that they were confident the proper drugs were used. Farris said the labels read “rocuronium bromide” instead of “vecuronium bromide,” which is a paralytic used in the lethal injection protocol. Farris said he believes the rocuronium bromide labels were used in training exercises and were never replaced.