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What Happened Last Night? Questions Remain After Arkansas Execution

KUAR | By Karen Tricot Steward,
Michael Hibblen, Sarah Whites-Koditschek
Published April 28, 2017 at 7:52 PM CDT
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Kelly Kissel of the Associated Press describing the inmate's reaction to the controversial lethal injection drug called midazolam.
Sarah Whites-Koditschek

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Kelly Kissel of the Associated Press describing the inmate's reaction to the controversial lethal injection drug called midazolam.
Credit Sarah Whites-Koditschek / Arkansas Public Media

The execution of inmate Kenneth Williams on Thursday night has prompted calls for an investigation after reports that he was lurching and convulsing about 3 minutes into the lethal injection process.

Williams is the fourth convicted killer put to death in Arkansas over a period of 8 days.

What happened last night, and how is it linked to a controversial drug used in the deadly three-drug cocktail? We'll explain.

Copyright 2017 KUAR

News from KUAR, KASU and AR Public Media
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Karen Tricot Steward
As Content Development Director, Karen Tricot Steward oversees the creation of news and cultural programming and helps set standards and best practices. She manages content on our website and social media. Karen also coordinates the internship program and collaborates with journalism professors at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock to teach students, helping fulfill public radio’s goal of serving the community by being a place of learning.
See stories by Karen Tricot Steward
Michael Hibblen
As News Director, Michael Hibblen oversees daily news coverage for KUAR. He handles assignments for the news staff, helps develop story ideas and edits copy. Michael isresponsible for starting a news-sharing partnership between public radio stations in Arkansas in 2009 which laid the foundation for what became Arkansas Public Media. He is also a regular panelist and fill-in host on AETN's Arkansas Week, where journalists discuss issues in the news.
See stories by Michael Hibblen
Sarah Whites-Koditschek
Sarah Whites-Koditschek is a Little Rock-based reporter for Arkansas Public Media covering education, healthcare, state politics, and criminal justice issues. Formerly she worked as a reporter and producer for WHYY in Philadelphia, and was an intern and editorial assistant for Morning Edition at National Public Radio in Los Angeles and Washington D.C.
See stories by Sarah Whites-Koditschek