12 September 2018 :

Nevada high court says execution doctor's name stays secret. The name of the physician picked to attend a state inmate's execution can remain secret, even from drug makers suing to ban the use of their products in the twice-postponed lethal injection, the Nevada Supreme Court ruled Monday. In a twist, lawyers for three pharmaceutical companies who won the right to obtain the name last week - and had promised to sue the doctor once they got it - told a judge in Las Vegas that they welcomed Monday's high court order. Attorney Todd Bice, representing drug firm Alvogen, told Clark County District Court Judge Elizabeth Gonzalez the high court decision to protect the doctor's identity, coupled with a recent sworn statement from Nevada prisons chief James Dzurenda, bolsters companies' arguments that their business would be hurt if their drugs are used. "We aren't going to get into the identity of the doctor. We do intend to argue strongly that having your name associated with capital punishment is harmful to reputations," Bice said. "The director testified that it would be ruinous of the doctor's reputation." Gonzalez had ruled last week that drug companies could learn the name, but it would not be disclosed to the public. The turnabout came on a day of boundary-setting decisions a day ahead of hearings on the drug companies' contentions that Nevada improperly obtained their drugs for a use the companies don't allow. Gonzalez plans three days of testimony on a lawsuit by Alvogen that stopped the July execution of Scott Raymond Dozier. The case was later joined by Hikma Pharmaceuticals USA and Sandoz Inc. State Supreme Court justices are watching developments before Gonzalez ahead of oral arguments next week on the state's bid to put Dozier's execution back on track for a yet-to-be-determined date in mid-November.