SALT LAKE CITY — Utah Gov. Gary Herbert has denied a request to temporarily stay the execution of an inmate scheduled to be put to death by firing squad early Friday.
Ronnie Lee Gardner's lawyers had asked Herbert for the stay Thursday morning.
In a statement, Herbert said the materials provided to him already have been considered and decided upon by the courts or the Utah Board of Pardons and Parole. Herbert's letter to Gardner's attorneys says Gardner has had "a full and fair opportunity" to have his case considered.
The 49-year-old Gardner is scheduled to be executed just after midnight Friday at the Utah State Prison. He was sentenced to death for a 1985 capital murder conviction stemming from the fatal courthouse shooting of attorney Michael Burdell during an escape attempt.
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