US federal court decides that first federal death sentence in 17 years can be carried out

The United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit has decided that the United States Department of Justice can proceed with its plan to carry out the first federal death sentence in 17 years. Daniel Lewis Lee had been sentenced to death for a family murder of three in 1996. Some of his family members had sued the Department of Justice arguing that couldn't safely travel to witness the execution because of the ongoing pandemic. A federal judge in Indiana initially suspended the execution plans only to be overruled by the Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit.

The family has stated that they are planning to appeal to the Supreme Court.