CARSON CITY — Scott Raymond Dozier, who wants to be executed for a Las Vegas murder, has threatened to kill himself if the state does not carry out his death sentence, Gov. Brian Sandoval said today.
Sandoval said Dozier has been placed on a suicide watch, with guards observing him around the clock at the Ely State Prison.
Dozier’s execution was scheduled for today, but a judge delayed it last week over concerns by defense attorneys that part of a lethal drug cocktail could hide signs of a botched process, leaving Dozier to feel himself suffocating.
The case has been sent to the Nevada Supreme Court for review.
A Clark County jury convicted Dozier and sentenced him to death in 2007 for killing 22-year-old Jeremiah Miller at a Las Vegas motel and taking $12,000 Miller had brought with him from Arizona to buy an ingredient for making methamphetamine.
The American Civil Liberties Union of Nevada has called for the governor to stay all executions.
“Capital punishment is inconsistent with the underlying values of our democratic system, namely the pursuit of life, liberty and happiness,” Executive Director Tod Story said in a news release.