Texas bars all clergy from execution chambers following Supreme Court decision
In the wake of two seemingly contradictory Supreme Court decisions regarding the presence of spiritual advisers at executions, the Texas Department of Criminal Justice has announced that all clergy will be banned from execution chambers.
Effective immediately, security personnel are the only people allowed to be present at such proceedings.
The move follows a Supreme Court ruling last week that stopped the execution of Patrick Henry Murphy after his request to have a Buddhist spiritual adviser present was denied by authorities in Texas. At the time, the policy stated that only state-employed clergy were allowed to be present, and no Buddhist spiritual advisers were employed by the state.
Last month justices allowed an execution in Alabama to go forward after an Alabama prison had barred a Muslim man’s imam from the execution chamber.
https://aleteia.org/2019/04/04/texas-bars-all-clergy-from-execution-chambers-following-supreme-court-decision/
