The US Supreme Court dismisses the appeal of a death row inmate from Oklahoma

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — The U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday denied a last-minute appeal by Oklahoma’s death row inmate Benjamin Cole, paving the way for him to receive a lethal injection Thursday.

Cole, 57, was found guilty and sentenced to death for killing his 9-month-old daughter Brianna Taylor by forcibly bending the child backwards and fracturing her spine. Prosecutors allege Cole was angry with the child for crying while playing a video game.

Cole’s lawyers have not disputed that he killed the child but say he has a serious mental illness and brain damage that worsened while he was in prison.

A state panel earlier this month denied Cole’s plea for clemency, and an Oklahoma district judge ruled that he was competent enough to be executed.

Cole’s execution would be the sixth since Oklahoma resumed capital punishment in October 2021.