Louisiana
How Louisiana nitrogen gas executions could be affected by court ruling on Alabama
Advocates for death row inmates in Louisiana are praising a decision this month by the U.S. Supreme Court that barred Alabama from carrying out its latest scheduled execution by nitrogen gas, while Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill panned the outcome as the work of a “rogue judge.”
The unsigned 6-3 decision in the case of Alabama double murderer Jeffery Lee denied Alabama’s emergency request to lift a lower court ban on killing him with nitrogen gas. For now it places executions by nitrogen gas on hold in Alabama, the first state to use the method on death row prisoners. Alabama has put seven prisoners to death using the method since 2024.
The court declined to spell out its rationale for pausing the Alabama execution, leaving uncertain the impact on Louisiana, the only other state to complete an execution by nitrogen gas. Louisiana falls under a different federal circuit.
Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall responded to the high court’s decision by asking the Alabama Supreme Court to let the state execute Lee by lethal injection instead. Marshall’s office did not respond to questions about whether or how Alabama intends to defend its use of nitrogen hypoxia at this point.
But Murrill downplayed the impact on executions in Louisiana. The Republican attorney general, who has pressed to restart Louisiana’s execution chamber in earnest, did not respond when asked how the decisions could impact the state’s future use of nitrogen gas.
“The United States Supreme Court has allowed it, and there are procedural explanations for the vote in the Alabama case,” Murrill said in a statement.
“Alabama, like Louisiana and other states, wants to carry out criminal sentences and deliver long-delayed justice that was promised to victims and their families in these heinous crimes,” she added. “So the pivot in this case to another method simply signals that Alabama does not intend to allow anti-death penalty activists to delay the execution.”
Advocates for inmates on death row hope the legal developments serve as more than a speed bump for the handful of states that have authorized nitrogen gas executions.
Lee’s case involved some of the same experts from a challenge last year to Louisiana’s first execution in 15 years, when the state used nitrogen gas in March 2025 to kill Jessie Hoffman for the 1996 rape and murder of Mary “Molly” Elliott.
In Hoffman’s case, a 5-4 majority of the U.S. Supreme Court denied an application to stay his execution. Arkansas, Mississippi and Oklahoma also have authorized executions by nitrogen gas but have not used it.
Capital attorney Cecelia Trenticosta Kappel of the New Orleans-based Promise of Justice Initiative said the lower courts’ reasoning in Lee’s case applies just as well here.
“Louisiana’s protocol for nitrogen gassing is a copycat of Alabama’s, so the factual findings of the district court and the Eleventh Circuit should apply to Louisiana with full force,” Kappel said in a statement.
“And unlike the federal Constitution, Louisiana’s Constitution goes further, explicitly banning torture and providing stronger safeguards against cruel, unusual, or excessive punishment.”
Murrill has pressed local courts to clear more death row inmates for execution. No others have taken place since Hoffman, though the Legislature has set tight new deadlines to quicken the post-conviction review process for condemned prisoners. Louisiana now has about 56 prisoners on death row.
Does nitrogen gas cause ‘needless suffering?’
In Alabama, Lee was convicted of a shotgun double killing during a 1998 robbery of a pawn shop. A jury settled on life in prison, but a judge overrode the decision with a death sentence, in a practice later outlawed.
U.S. District Judge Emily Marks, who was nominated to the federal bench by President Donald Trump, at first rejected Lee’s challenge to the nitrogen gas death under the Eighth Amendment’s ban on “cruel and unusual” punishment.
After a trial, Marks ruled that Alabama’s nitrogen gas protocol didn’t cause “needless suffering,” though she found it caused one to three minutes of “severe air hunger and corresponding emotional distress, anxiety, physiological stress, and physical discomfort.”
The 11th Circuit Court of Appeals concluded differently, saying “the overall suffering described by the district court, which lasts for one to three minutes, presents a substantial risk of serious harm over and above death itself.”
The appeals court sent the case back to Marks, who then decided that Lee’s chosen alternative — a firing squad — while not approved by Alabama, was “feasible, readily implemented, and significantly reduces the substantial risk of serious harm posed by the Protocol.”
Marks issued a permanent injunction that the appeals court upheld, reasoning that if it didn’t, the state could moot the case by killing Lee. Alabama then asked the Supreme Court to step in. Granting Lee’s challenge would be “unprecedented in American history,” the state claimed, expanding “the concept of cruelty well beyond the bounds of the Eighth Amendment.”
Justices Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito and Neil Gorsuch dissented from the denial of the state’s petition.
Nitrogen gas vs. firing squad vs. other methods
The U.S. Supreme Court has a long history of staying out of challenges over methods of state executions. Lee’s was the first involving nitrogen gas where the justices were asked to suspend a permanent injunction issued by a lower court long enough for Alabama to kill him.
Before then, the high court had allowed eight executions by nitrogen hypoxia to go forward.
One legal scholar argued that Louisiana “just may think it’s not worth it” to pursue more nitrogen gas executions after Alabama’s response to the recent court ruling.
“The litigation in Alabama has set a road map for attorneys to follow if it goes all the way up to the Supreme Court. It’s a pretty good yellow brick road in terms of the cost, the controversy, the chaos that’s involved in dealing with such a very challenging and difficult method of execution,” said Fordham University law professor Deborah Denno.
In a recent paper, Denno argued that the U.S. has entered a new era of “crueler, sloppier, and more reckless” executions, with some states tapping older techniques like the firing squad and others approving nitrogen gas, a new one.
The last execution using nitrogen gas came last October in Alabama, when condemned inmate Anthony Boyd appeared to take longer to die than any others using the method. The Associated Press reported Boyd shaking and heaving for more than 15 minutes before the curtain closed on the execution chamber.
Louisiana lawmakers approved nitrogen gas along with the electric chair as options in 2024 legislation after the state struggled for years with access to lethal injection drugs. The choice of methods under the law is left to the state corrections secretary.
Supreme Court ‘shadow docket’ leaves reasoning murky
Some legal observers cautioned that the court may have denied Alabama’s plea for reasons not entirely related to Lee’s fate.
Stephen Vladeck, a Georgetown University professor who has studied the court’s growing use of its “shadow docket” to settle legal issues through emergency decisions, argued in an amicus brief that the court shouldn’t let that docket be used to clear a path for Lee’s execution.
John Blume, a Cornell University law professor, said the court’s actions on the shadow docket are notoriously hard to decipher.
“So, it could mean that the refusal to lift the (injunction) stay means a majority thinks the District Court and the Court of Appeals got it right. It could also mean that they might hear the case on the merits and vacating the stay would moot the case,” Blume said.
“Or it could just mean that they did not see what has (been) until this Court came along the difficult standard for a stay being satisfied.”
Blume said the court has granted the vast majority of emergency relief requests from orders staying executions.
“But most of those were preliminary injunctions,” he added. “This was a permanent one.”
Lee’s legal team with the Arnold & Porter firm in Washington, D.C. praised the decision while noting that it didn’t clip Alabama’s right to kill him, only how.
“We are asking only that the execution be carried out by a constitutional method,” the firm said, adding that the high court ruling “ensures the opportunity for a full review of the trial and appellate record before any execution proceeds.”
Volunteers from five Louisiana regions completed beautification projects as part of the Church’s annual Youth Conference in Lafayette
Lafayette man makes Louisiana mountaineering history
Dr. Linus Wilson became the first known Louisianan to reach all 50 state high points, summiting Mount McKinley solo.
More than 260 youth and adult volunteers from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints spent Thursday morning giving back to one of Lafayette’s most popular public spaces.
On July 9, the volunteers completed the project at Moncus Park. The volunteers, who were in Lafayette for the Church’s annual Youth Conference at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette, traveled from stakes in Monroe, Alexandria, Baton Rouge, Denham Springs and Slidell to participate in the two-hour service project, according to a news release.
Working across the park, the group helped improve the 100-acre community destination, which serves as a gathering place for recreation, events and outdoor activities throughout the year.
The project also highlighted the role volunteers play in helping maintain public spaces that thousands of Lafayette residents enjoy.
The service project was part of the Church’s annual Youth Conference, which combines faith-centered learning with opportunities for community service.
“As followers of Christ, we believe one of the most meaningful ways to show our love for God is by serving our neighbors,” Karl Winegar, Stake President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints over the Lafayette and Baton Rouge areas, said. “Strong communities are built when people care for one another, and service gives these young people an opportunity to put their faith into action.”
Winegar added that, as they work alongside the community, a bigger purpose is being taught for the volunteers.
“They are learning that even simple acts of kindness can strengthen relationships, meet needs, and make a lasting difference in the lives of others,” Winegar said.
Aaron Gonsoulin is the General Assignment/Trending Reporter for The Daily Advertiser. Contact him at AGonsoulin@theadvertiser.com.
BATON ROUGE, La. (Louisiana Illuminator) – Hundreds of meticulously labeled vials filled with mosquitos line colorful plastic trays inside a freezer at the Louisiana Animal Disease Diagnostic Laboratory in Baton Rouge.
Each vial sitting atop the frosty shelves, aligned in rows like egg cartons on a grocery store shelf, contains up to a hundred mosquitoes sent to the lab from across the state. Scientists can extract information hidden within the mosquitos’ DNA to help stop the spread of diseases to humans and keep infections at bay.
“Look at your electric bill,” said Alma Roy, director of the lab housed at Louisiana State University. When it costs more to keep your home comfortably cool, that’s when the airborne pests — and the viruses they carry — flourish and circulate.
“When it’s wet and hot, the mosquito is out there reproducing and biting,” Roy said.
The spindly black bugs aren’t picky about what they bite, picking up diseases like West Nile virus from animals like birds and passing them on to humans.
The Louisiana Arbovirus Surveillance Program helps health professionals, entomologists and local mosquito control districts stay apprised on where a disease crops up.
Mosquito control organizations at the parish level across the state capture mosquitoes and pack them into vials. The vials are stuffed into small white boxes and shipped weekly to the lab in Baton Rouge. Around 30 of Louisiana’s 64 parishes participate in the voluntary surveillance program every year, according to the Louisiana Department of Health.
Each year the lab tests 25,000 vials of mosquitos, which are called pools in the lab. In total, the tests involve up to 2.5 million individual insects, but it can’t be done one mosquito at a time.
“We take the whole pool and puree them,” Roy said.
Lab technician Tarra Hardy adds a mixing solution and a copper ball to mash up the pool before a machine blends the sample.
The result resembles a small mosquito smoothie, which is placed into a machine that analyzes the contents and shows its findings on a computer screen. Colorful spikes on a graph show when a sample tests positive for West Nile, eastern equine encephalitis or St. Louis encephalitis — the most common diseases the lab detects.
Hardy said it only takes around 48 hours for the lab to test a sample, so mosquito control personnel can get information on where a disease is spreading fast enough to contain it.
Sarah Michaels, a clinical associate professor with Tulane University’s Department of Tropical Medicine and Infectious Disease, works as a medical entomologist who focuses on insects that carry diseases passed by arthropods, known by scientists as arboviruses. This includes mosquitos, ticks and flies that can be vectors for disease.
The ability of the testing lab in Baton Rouge to turn around its test results quickly allows local mosquito abatement efforts to get out in front of mosquito-borne diseases before they spread, Michaels said. With the geographic location of a positive test result pinpointed, abatement crews can go on the offensive, and the public can take preventative measures.
“That’s kind of why it’s important for us to know if the virus is circulating locally, so we can give people information so they can take precautions to protect themselves against mosquito bites,” she said.
Spraying insecticide by truck, plane or helicopter kills the adult mosquitoes, and Michaels said larvicide is applied in areas with standing water, to halt their development. This typically uses naturally occurring bacteria only harmful to developing mosquito eggs.
The majority of West Nile cases reported to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control are between June and October, with steep drop offs when cooler temperatures curb mosquito breeding.
But Michaels described how, with summertime temperatures starting sooner and lasting later in the year and frequent storms bringing in standing water perfect for mosquitoes to live and reproduce in, keeping a watchful eye is more important than ever.
“Mosquito season, which is getting longer and longer here, is kind of near the peak of it right now, June through September,” she said. “Surveillance really zeroes in on where and when it’s happening, and then hopefully can suppress those mosquito populations before that becomes widespread and puts more people at risk.”
West Nile was first detected in the United States in Queens, York, in the late 1990s and spread around the country. The virus was first detected in Louisiana in August 2001 when an infected crow in Kenner tested positive. That fall, it showed up in horses from three coastal parishes, along with Louisiana’s first human West Nile case.
Case numbers climbed to their highest point nationally in 2003 with about 9,800, and the count has remained relatively stable below 3,000 cases over the past 10 years.
“It can be mild and transient, but it can be really severe as well,” Michaels said
West Nile virus is relatively uncommon, affecting less than 5,000 people in the United States in a typical year, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control. By comparison, the most prominent flu strain in 2024-25 infected more than 51 million people, the CDC reported.
While most cases of West Nile don’t produce any symptoms, those that do usually cause mild, flu-like reactions like fever and muscle aches. Symptoms can last anywhere from days to weeks.
If the virus enters the central nervous system, it can result in complications such as brain swelling and paralysis. Less than 1% of people infected develop symptoms this severe, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control, but some cases can require hospitalization or even result in death.
Louisiana recorded four West Nile-related deaths last year and three in 2024. No human infections have been reported this year as of early July.
Louisiana Illuminator is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Louisiana Illuminator maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Greg LaRose for questions: info@lailluminator.com. Follow Louisiana Illuminator on Facebook and X.
Copyright 2026 Louisiana Illuminator. All rights reserved.
NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – Louisiana health officials are tracking a rise in cases of cyclosporiasis, a stomach illness caused by a parasite that can be found on contaminated food or in contaminated water.
The Louisiana Department of Health has confirmed 23 cases of Cyclospora infection in the state, according to information obtained by Louisiana Illuminator. One person has been hospitalized, and no deaths have been reported in Louisiana.
The number is slightly above Louisiana’s recent average. LDH said the state has averaged 20 reported cases over the same time period during the past five years.
“Because many of these cases are still under investigation, this number is preliminary and subject to change,” an LDH representative said.
Cyclospora is a microscopic parasite that causes an intestinal illness called cyclosporiasis. The CDC says people can get sick after eating food or drinking water contaminated with the parasite.
The illness is often associated with fresh produce. Past outbreaks in the United States have been linked to items such as leafy greens, herbs and berries.
Symptoms usually begin about a week after a person eats or drinks something contaminated, though the CDC says symptoms can appear anywhere from two days to two weeks or more after infection.
The most common symptom is watery diarrhea, sometimes with frequent and explosive bowel movements. Other symptoms can include stomach cramps, bloating, nausea, fatigue, loss of appetite and low-grade fever.
If left untreated, the illness can last from a few days to more than a month. Symptoms can also go away and then return.
Health officials say cyclosporiasis is not likely to spread directly from one person to another. The CDC says Cyclospora must spend at least one to two weeks in the environment after passing in a bowel movement before it becomes infectious.
Cases typically rise during warmer months. The CDC considers May 1 through Aug. 31 the yearly cyclosporiasis season.
Louisiana is not the only state tracking cases. The CDC said in its June 16 update that it had received reports of 145 domestically acquired cases in 17 states, with 20 hospitalizations and no deaths. Federal officials said there was no evidence at that time of one single multistate outbreak linking all cases, but several clusters remained under investigation.
Since that update, some states have reported larger increases. Michigan has reported one of the largest outbreaks in the country, with over 700 cases.
Federal and state health officials have not identified a clear source for the current illnesses.
The CDC says people with symptoms should contact a health care provider. Testing for Cyclospora may require a specific lab test that is not always part of routine stool testing.
Health officials recommend washing hands before handling food, rinsing fresh produce under running water and cooking vegetables when possible. Washing produce can reduce the risk, though it may not remove all Cyclospora from contaminated food.
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