Thomas Whitaker v. Brad Livingston

Plaintiffs Thomas Whitaker, Perry Williams, and Michael Yowell appeal the denial of a motion for preliminary injunction to restrain the defendant state officials from conducting executions with pentobarbital procured from compounding pharmacies. The plaintiffs raise claims under the Eighth and Fourteenth Amendments, under the Supremacy Clause, and based on an access-to-the-courts argument. Yowell is scheduled for execution on October 9, 2013.

To obtain a preliminary injunction, a plaintiff must establish(1) a substantial likelihood of success on the merits, (2) a substantial threat of…