Muslim inmate asks Alabama court to halt his execution over Christian prison chaplain law

Inmate's lawyers say state's Christian chaplain law serves an 'unconstitutional' purpose

Lawyers for a Muslim inmate scheduled to be executed in Alabama next month have requested a federal judge order a stay amid a new lawsuit filed this week.

The attorneys for Dominique Ray say the the state is violating his rights by requiring a Christian prison chaplain to stand near him as he is put to death, according to the lawsuit.

Ray is scheduled to be executed 7 February for the fatal stabbing of 15-year-old Tiffany Harville in 1995. The 42-year-old inmate’s lawyers asked the federal judge in the suit filed Monday to halt his execution while the court considers his claim.

Attorneys for Ray said the prison warden refused Ray's request to have a Muslim imam stand in the execution chamber instead of the prison chaplain during the planned lethal injection.

They also said the warden refused his request to not have the chaplain present during his execution.

While condemned Alabama inmates can visit with their own spiritual adviser before an execution — and have that person witness the execution from an adjoining room— only a correctional officer and the prison chaplain have been in the death chamber with the inmate during recent executions in Alabama.

Ray's attorneys said the chaplain's “mandatory presence in the execution chamber can serve only one interest — an unconstitutional one — safeguarding the soul or spiritual health of the condemned inmate in the Christian belief system.”

Department of Corrections spokesman Bob Horton wrote in an email that the department has rules about who is allowed in the death chamber.

“The Alabama Department of Corrections follows a protocol that only allows approved correctional officials, that includes the prison's chaplain, to be inside the chamber where executions are lawfully carried out,” Mr Horton wrote.

He added, “the presence of the prison's chaplain in the chamber follows department protocol regardless of the chaplain's spiritual belief or that of the inmate.“

Additional reporting by AP