Montana’s top court upholds stay of execution for Canadian Ronald Smith

A stay of execution has been upheld by the Montana Supreme Court for Ronald Smith, the only Canadian on death row in the United States.

Smith, a 53-year-old originally from Red Deer, Alberta, had been facing a January 31 execution date at Montana State Prison in Deer Lodge, Mont., after a legal battle between two Montana judges.

Last month, Judge John Larson set an execution date for next month — just two days after Judge Jeffrey Sherlock had issued a stay.

Sherlock is presiding over a civil suit that was filed on Smith’s behalf by the American Civil Liberties Union, which argues that Montana’s method of lethal injection is unconstitutionally cruel.

That case is on hold while Montana State Prison finishes building a new death chamber and establishes protocol to be used in future executions.

In his court document to the supreme court, Larson argued that “Sherlock lacked the authority” to prevent the prison from carrying out the death sentence.

But the Montana Supreme Court disagreed.

“We conclude that Judge Sherlock did not err in granting the injunction given the circumstances above described, and particularly in light of the fact that the injunction was requested on joint motion of Mr. Smith and the State of Montana,” the judges wrote in their order.

“While we understand Judge Larson’s concerns over the prospect of conflicting orders, the fact is that Mr. Smith’s execution has — over the past 15 years — been stayed by various state and federal courts while those courts weighed the propriety of Mr. Smith’s conviction and sentence.

“Such is the path of death penalty cases. Therefore, we decline to implement a procedure to limit the consideration of stays to the sentencing.”

Smith was convicted of shooting and killing two cousins, Harvey Madman Jr. and Thomas Running Rabbit, while high on drugs and alcohol near East Glacier, Montana, in 1982.

Greg Jackson, who has represented Smith for the past 25 years, told The Canadian Press that the news was not a surprise.

“We had expected that the court would either uphold Sherlock’s preliminary injunction staying the execution or in the alternative issue one themselves,” said Jackson.

“It is a relief. Even though we anticipated and expected that it would be granted of course, until an order is issued you don’t know.”

Jackson said the supreme court judges recognize that the lethal injection case is not frivolous and the matter has been going on for a couple of years.

“The court just pointed out to the judge that stays are not unusual in death penalty cases,” Jackson said.

“That’s the nature of the beast and acknowledging that the lethal injection case had been pending for two years and certainly the judge had every right and the jurisdiction to issue a stay.”

Smith refused a plea deal that would have seen him avoid death row but spend his life in prison. He pleaded guilty three weeks later and then asked for, and received, a death sentence.

He later had a change of heart and he has been on a legal roller-coaster for the past 25 years. Several previous execution dates were set, but each was subsequently overturned.

Jackson said it’s not clear how soon the courts will hear the lethal injection case.