Some of Alabama's most tightly guarded death row inmates have managed to get high behind bars, with toxicology reports revealing illegal drugs in the systems of several men executed by the state since 2023. Four inmates put to death since the state resumed capital punishment in 2023—including Derrick Dearman, executed in October 2024—tested positive for illegal substances like methamphetamine and synthetic cannabinoids at the time of their deaths, according to toxicology reports reviewed by NBC News.
Dearman, who blamed a long-standing meth addiction for the brutal 2016 murders that sent him to death row, wasn't alone. Jamie Ray Mills and Carey Dale Grayson also had meth or synthetic cannabinoids in their systems when executed, while Kenneth Smith, the first person in America put to death by nitrogen gas, tested positive for a similar synthetic drug. The findings raised alarms among medical experts and former corrections officials, who say drugs showing up in autopsies should, at a minimum, prompt internal investigations.
How do narcotics make it into Alabama's most secure facilities? Corrections officers, visitors, and even drones dropping drug-filled backpacks have all played roles, state officials concede, per NBC. Legal papers allegedly soaked in drugs are another loophole investigators are eyeing. The state Department of Corrections has acknowledged staff corruption and drug trafficking, but it hasn't answered specific questions about screening condemned inmates for drugs before executions. The state is scheduled to execute Geoffrey Todd West, 50, on Thursday night, per Alabama Public Radio.
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