Actually DM, why recuse himself when the 8th circuit wants to hear the case again and when it rules, then SCOTUS rules(with an Alito much more read up on the case).
But what the hey you gotta go knee jerk anyway.
Alito is no less "read up" on the case than were Roberts, Thomas, and Scalia. The appeals weren't filed until yesterday. And, it's hardly as if Alito is a novice to hearing capital appeals - he's heard 10 of them as a Circuit Court judge.
And yes, if in fact he had not had time to review the case, he should've recused himself, which is exactly what Alito did with the Rutherford death penalty appeal.
This whole idea that Alito just wanted to get "up to speed" is truly beyond laughable.
I don't fault him for wanting to know more, but the core of my argument is that the big intellect and decision-making power we were assured he would bring to the court failed him and us. He stated in his hearings that he supported the rule of law. Well, in whatever state this murderer is in, they have a law outlawing murder and they have another law authorizing lethal injection as the means of executing convicted murderers. Murderer was tried, convicted and sentenced to die for his crime in accordance with the laws of that state. So, we start out with Alito proclaiming in his hearings that he supports the rule of law and promptly turning his back on it. Where is the justice in this decision for the victim?
But, I'll give him a pass on that. The court is going to re-hear the whole lethal injection nonsense later on anyway, so we might be able to ignore that, except . . . . . . . . . . . . a very BIG except. The law in the US works from legal precedent and, until the lethal injection argument is heard and decided, the precedent has been established by Alito's vote that, essentially says, lethal injection IS an Unconstitutional, cruel and unusual punishment. Now we have a new legal precedent that has been established by none other than the Supreme Court of the United States. This isn't the loony ninth circuit court of appeals that we love to hate, here, this is THE highest court in the land that we conservatives have diligently worked to gain control over since Bush was first elected.
If Justice Alito is such a believer in the rule of law AND if he felt that he was ill-prepared to rule on the merits of the case, his big intellect should have told him to recuse himself. That's fair. I wouldn't jump on his case if he had done that. Instead, for whatever reason, on his very first vote on the Supreme Court, he turns around and spits in conservatives' eyes (the same conservatives who worked very hard to get him to the SCOTUS).
Meanwhile, the murderer's victim is still dead and awaiting the day he gets justice. There's no question that the guy murdered his victim, there's only a question of whether or not gently putting him "to sleep" as a means of sending him to his eternal, celestial dirt nap is cruel and unusual punishment.
If the whole thing weren't so disgusting, his victim would be laughing in his grave. In the meantime, until we have a ruling from the SCOTUS on the lethal injection issue, this bag of filth is still sucking air, as will other murderers condemned to die by lethal injection. For my money, I'd just as soon they bring back hanging or ole sparky. Murderers deserve to suffer every bit as much as their victims.