U.S. District Court Judge Jeremy Fogel had previously cleared the way for Brown's lethal injection after the state revamped its execution process. But the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ordered him to reconsider that decision using different legal standards. Because of that order, Fogel halted the execution - saying he didn't have enough time to deliberate before the scheduled execution.
If a higher court doesn't reverse Fogel's decision by midnight Friday, the state won't be able to execute Brown - or any other death row inmate - for several months … because there's a shortage of one of the drugs used in lethal injections.
Brown was convicted of raping and strangling a 15-year-old Riverside girl in 1980.