RICHMOND, Va. (AP) _ A coalition of several hundred religious leaders is urging Virginia lawmakers to reject a proposal to conceal the identities of pharmacies supplying drugs to be used in executions. Several representatives of the interfaith coalition are scheduled to discuss their objections at a news conference Monday at the General Assembly Building in Richmond. Lethal injection drugs have been hard to obtain in Virginia and other states. That situation prompted Del. Jackson Miller to propose allowing Virginia to use the electric chair if drugs aren’t available. Gov. Terry McAuliffe stripped the electric chair provision and replaced it with one allowing the state to obtain the drugs from pharmacies whose identities would be kept confidential to protect them from critics. The religious coalition says the secrecy amendment would improperly shield pharmacies from accountability.
