Title: Why does it take so long to execute someone on death row? - Quora
Headings: Why does it take so long to execute someone on death row?
Why does it take so long to execute someone on death row?
Jamie Scoverski
Quora User
Ming Chun
Rihan Chowdhury

Content: Many inmates are mentally ill - Executing the mentally ill is technically a crime against humanity and many states are hesitant to do so. They are, however, willing to medicate such a person and get them “ready” to be executed when they get better. No one wants to execute an innocent person - While it almost certainly has occurred, no one wants to be the first one who the media “catches”. So the state actually works along with the defense to an extent to ensure that the defendant is indeed guilty before he or she is executed. They are seeking the execution; however they will wait until the prisoner exhausts their appeal to do so. Frankly, the prisoner is often more likely to die from illness or old age before they are ever executed
William Formby
, former Professor of Criminal Justice (emeritus) at The University of Alabama (1978-2003)
Updated 2 years ago · Author has 2K answers and 3.1M answer views
The wheels of the justice system do move slowly. Consider the following steps or stages as the case moves through the system. We will use your case example and Alabama as the ex a mole state. Working on capital cases in this state I would say that the average time for the case to get to trial if all goes smoothly is three years.