Ahead of a scheduled execution, Indiana procured its lethal injection drugs from an Indianapolis pharmacy that state regulators are actively investigating for drug contamination and poor storage practices, legal documents reveal.
The disclosure, first detailed in a petition filed by attorneys for Jeffrey Weisheit, marks the initial public confirmation of where the state obtains its pentobarbital. According to records included in the legal filing, Indiana purchased six vials of the drug for $275,000 from Pharmaneek Pharmacy Services.
Attorneys Identify Pharmacy Supplying Execution Drugs from Invoice
State law typically shields the identities of entities supplying execution drugs from public view. However, Weisheit’s attorneys managed to identify Pharmaneek Pharmacy Services through an address visible on a poorly redacted state invoice. IndyStar confirmed that the invoice lists the pharmacy’s location at 7345 Woodland Dr, Suite A.
The Department of Correction reported receiving the shipment on October 29, following a September 25 purchase of six 50-milliliter vials of pentobarbital. Agency spokesperson Noelle Russell defended the procurement process. “We remain confident in our process and our ability to humanely carry out the lawfully imposed sentence for the murders of two innocent children,” the department stated.
The legal petition challenges that confidence by highlighting extensive state findings against the supplier. Indiana Attorney General Todd Rokita’s office filed a complaint against Pharmaneek last November, leading to a settlement that placed the facility on probation. Exhibits attached to the defense petition indicate that state regulators discovered numerous infractions, including unlabeled pill bottles, expired medications on active shelves, a lack of consistent temperature logs, and a storage room kept at 84 degrees.
It is alarming that the state purchased these drugs from a pharmacy it is trying to shut down due to major safety issues in the storage and management of drugs, said Joe Perkovich, one of Weisheit’s attorneys, in a news release.
The Indiana Board of Pharmacy is now moving to potentially suspend Pharmaneek’s license this month due to ongoing contamination concerns and failed inspections.
Governor Denies Clemency Hours After Supplier Becomes Public
Hours after Weisheit’s legal team made the supplier public and petitioned Gov. Mike Braun to delay the execution, the governor denied clemency. Braun’s decision followed a unanimous recommendation from the Indiana Parole Board to reject the clemency plea.
Both the Department of Correction and the Attorney General’s office maintained that the state is operating in full compliance with state law. Representatives declined to address inquiries regarding Pharmaneek’s past infractions or confirm whether the governor’s office plans any pause to the schedule.
Weisheit’s attorneys argue that Indiana’s procurement protocol mirrors procedures in Tennessee that led to heavily scrutinized, botched executions for inmates Tony Carruthers and Christa Pike. The defense also criticized the state’s reliance on prison guards rather than medical professionals to insert intravenous lines, calling the practice reckless.
Transparency and Background on Indiana Executions
The state resumed executions in December 2024 after a 15-year hiatus, using lethal injection to put three men to death in less than a year. Weisheit was convicted and sentenced to death for the 2010 murders of 8-year-old Alyssa Lynch and her 5-year-old brother, Caleb, who were killed during a fire at their Evansville home.
