"Appeals Court Panel Denies Delay in Execution of Longest-Serving Death Row Inmate"

A U.S. appeals court panel has declined to delay the execution of Thomas Creech, one of the nation’s longest-serving death row inmates, who is scheduled to be executed in Idaho next week for killing a fellow prison inmate in 1983. Creech's attorneys sought a delay, arguing that his death sentence should be set aside because it was issued by a judge, not a jury, under evolving standards of decency. The panel rejected this claim, stating that Creech had not provided enough evidence to prove a notable change in attitudes toward judge-imposed executions in recent years. Creech's history includes multiple convictions and suspected killings dating back half a century, with his attorneys filing multiple challenges regarding his execution.