Montana Court Upholds Stay of Execution for Canadian on Death Row

A judge has decided to hear a suit alleging the death penalty is unconstitutionally cruel before executing Ronald Smith.

Smith was born in Red Deer, AB, and was convicted of murdering two cousins by the side of a Montana highway in 1982. After exhausting all his legal appeals, Smith was sentenced earlier this month to be executed on Jan. 31, 2011. But in an overlapping ruling a second judge granted him a stay of execution, which has now been upheld pending the outcome of a suit launched by the American Civil Liberties Union. The ACLU claims Montana’s death penalty constitutes cruel and unusual punishment and is unconstitutional. A Canadian court ruling compelled Stephen Harper’s government to seek clemency on Smith’s behalf, but critics say his efforts have been less than enthusiastic and are unlikely to become more forceful as he rolls out his domestic tough-on-crime agenda.