USA - Ohio. Ohio adds midazolam and hydromorphone to the lethal injection protocol

Ohio adds  midazolam and hydromorphone to the lethal injection protocol. Prisons spokeswoman JoEllen Smith said pentobarbital will remain Ohio's primary method of administering the death penalty. A policy posted to the prisons department's website listed a combination of midazolam and hydromorphone as an alternative if sufficient pentobarbital isn't available or if the existing supply "is deemed unusable" by the medical team. The agency's announcement came just days after its last supplies of pentobarbital expired. The last dose before the expiration was used to put condemned killer Harry Mitts to death Sept. 25. A federal judge had already indicated he'll review the new execution process. In 2009, Ohio switched to a single dose of sodium thiopental. In 2011, it switched to pentobarbital when the manufacturer of sodium thiopental also restricted its distribution.