Another legal challenge to the death penalty has been launched. Death row inmate John Middleton, whose execution is expected to be scheduled for September 17th, is the lead plaintiff in a civil case filed in Cole County Circuit Court challenging Missouri’s method of lethal injection.

The suit includes 13 death row inmates, and claims the state’s method of lethal injection violates the state’s Administrative Procedures Act.

In addition to the inmates, other plaintiffs in the suit include State Senator Joan Bray (D-St. Louis) and State Representative LaJoyce Johnson (D-St. Louis). Both are opponents of the death penalty. A federal judge recently ruled that Missouri’s method of executing prisoners by lethal injection is constitutional.