Missouri House Hearing Canceled on Execution Protocols

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — A Missouri House panel has canceled a hearing that was to look into concerns about the state's execution procedures.

Committee Chairman Jay Barnes says he called off Tuesday's hearing after learning that Department of Corrections Director George Lombardi was not going to attend it.

It wasn't immediately clear why Lombardi wasn't going to be there.

Barnes says he didn't want a one-sided hearing and hopes to reschedule at a later date.

The House Government Oversight and Accountability Committee was to look into concerns that the department is obtaining its execution drug from a compounding pharmacy in Oklahoma that's not licensed in Missouri.

Barnes says he also wants to examine how the department determines that all legal appeals are exhausted before carrying out executions.