The Tennessee Supreme Court has delayed the execution of Billy Ray Irick, the convicted rapist and murderer who was scheduled to die Oct. 7.
The court issued an order Thursday granting a motion filed by Irick's attorneys last week, which sought to postpone the execution because of an ongoing lawsuit. Irick, who is sentenced to die for raping and murdering a 7-year-old Knoxville girl in 1985, is one of 11 death row inmates who are suing the state over the secrecy surrounding its lethal injection protocol.
This is the second time Irick's death date has been moved by the court. He was originally to be executed on Jan. 15 before that date was changed, also because of the ongoing litigation. Nickolus Johnson, a convicted murderer, was scheduled for execution on April 22, but a stay was granted for procedural reasons.
Tennessee's next execution is scheduled for Feb. 10, when Stephen West is to be put to death for the rape, kidnapping, torture and murder of a Union County woman her 15-year-old daughter.
