Brian Dorsey was found guilty of shooting his cousin Sarah and her husband Benjamin Bonnie dead in their beds while he was staying with them in 2006. Two appeals were still before the US Supreme Court in the hours leading up to his death.
A former Missouri Supreme Court justice had given support to the clemency petition. One of the appeals focused on Dorsey’s good behavior, while the other claimed he should be spared because one of the lawyers in his trial supposedly had a conflict of interest.
One officer wrote in the petition: “The Brian I have known for years could not hurt anyone.” Dorsey’s attorneys successfully appealed for him to have pain relief during the execution on account of his obesity and diabetes.
Because of these conditions and because he was a reformed IV drug user, there were concerns over the executioners being unable to find a vein for the injection. Forceps would then be used to separate tissue from a vein, giving the executioner a place to inject the drug.
“It’s surgery,” federal public defender and one of Dorsey’s attorneys, Arin Brenner, said. Brian has spent every day of his time in prison trying to make amends for his crime, and dozens of correctional officers have attested to his remorse, transformation, and commitment to service.
