The state of Arizona executed death row inmate Frank Atwood on June 8 at the state prison in Florence.

A death row prisoner who could be among the first in Arizona to be executed in almost seven years is opposing a move that would reduce the amount of time he would have to respond to the state's request for his execution warrant.

Gov. Doug Ducey said he will obey Arizona law and not Pope Francis, who has now declared that the death penalty is unacceptable in all cases.

News organizations plan to appeal a ruling that concludes Arizona isn't required to reveal the identity of the companies that supply the state with drugs for executions.

News organizations will clash with Arizona prison officials over the First Amendment at a trial to determine whether the public has a right to know who supplies execution drugs and the qualifications of people who carry out the death penalty.

A federal judge has approved a settlement between the state and a group of condemned prisoners who sued over how Arizona conducts executions.

Changes to the state execution policy published by the Arizona Department of Corrections appear to meet demands defense attorneys made in a lawsuit filed on behalf of seven death-row inmates.

According to the Bureau of Justice Statistics’ most recent data – accounting for prisoners under sentence of death as of December 31, 2015 – Arizona did see its first uptick in death row inmates in five years with the addition of two inmates in 2015. But that runs counter to the slow yet steady decline of the state’s death row.

The novel policy has drawn sneers from defense attorneys who were puzzled as to why the state would think that they would assist in killing their clients.

The state of Arizona has agreed to settle part of a lawsuit that protests the way it carries out executions.