ADCRR notifies Arizona's AG that it's prepared for executions after obtaining necessary drugs

The Arizona Department of Corrections, Rehabilitation and Reentry (ADCRR) says it is ready to start executions again.

Executions have been on hold and now the department says the necessary drugs have been obtained.

The last execution in Arizona was in 2014. Joseph Wood, a convicted killer, died nearly two hours after he was injected 15 times. Seven years later, the hold on executions is about to end.

It took nearly two hours for Joseph Wood to die after he was given 15 doses of the sedative midazolam and a painkiller. (file) (Arizona Department of Corrections)

After receiving the letter from ADCRR, Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich said, "So I'm glad now as a state we can move forward with executions in enforcing the law."

The letter stated that for months, the department was working to obtain the necessary lethal drugs to implement executions. Now Brnovich says families of victims can get the justice they've been waiting for.

"Some of these crimes.. the individuals on death row.. some of those crimes occurred back in the '70s. You have people who have been waiting for justice and it's really not fair to the families."

A lethal injection table (file)

The AG's office is responsible for filing execution warrants with the state supreme court. Once authorized, the state will have 35 days to execute said death row inmate.

Opposing the death penalty, Jared Keenan with the American Civil Liberties Union of Arizona. He says executions don't bring the closure supporters say they do.

"And realize how much money it costs and how much money is wasted seeking to execute people. I think the tide will begin to turn even in Arizona, and that's our hope."

Currently, there are 115 Arizona inmates on death row. Nearly two dozen have exhausted their appeals.

Arizona A.R.S. § 13-757(A): Method of infliction of sentence of death; identity of executioners; license suspension

Continuing Coverage:

Tune in to FOX 10 Phoenix for the latest news:

For the latest local news, download the FOX 10 News app.

Sign up for FOX 10 email alerts, newsletters