On 5th August 2025, Tennessee conducted the execution of Byron Black, despite active legal battles over whether his implantable cardioverter‑defibrillator (ICD) should have been deactivated. Black, 69, was pronounced dead at 10:43 a.m., roughly ten minutes after the lethal injection began. Witnesses overwhelmingly agreed that Black appeared to be in visible distress, saying “it hurts so bad” and lifting his head repeatedly during the procedure.
Black’s attorneys argued that the ICD, functioning as both a defibrillator and pacemaker, could activate during the lethal injection, delivering powerful and painful shocks. They insisted it violated the Eighth Amendment’s ban on cruel and unusual punishment, especially given Black’s deteriorating health—including dementia, heart failure, kidney disease, and intellectual disability.
A lower court judge initially agreed, ordering that the device be deactivated at the time of execution. However, the Tennessee Supreme Court overturned that ruling, determining that ordering deactivation amounted to an unlawful stay of execution. Hospitals, including Nashville General, declined to participate in deactivation, citing ethical constraints.
Media witnesses described Black making audible sounds of distress, repeatedly moving while strapped to the gurney, and expressing pain verbally. A spiritual adviser sang and prayed over him throughout. Black said: “Oh, it’s hurting so bad.” His legal counsel affirmed they would review ICD data in a post-mortem autopsy to determine whether the device discharged during the execution.
The execution marked Tennessee’s second of 2025, following a five‑year pause, and is the 28th execution in the U.S. this year—the highest number since 2015. Black had been on death row since his 1989 conviction for the 1988 murders of Angela Clay and her daughters Latoya (9) and Lakeisha (6), crimes committed while he was on work release.
His defense also argued that his intellectual disability should have barred his execution, referencing a 2021 state law precluding further hearings when prior appeals have already been made—appeals that were filed in 2004.
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