Florida's Supreme Court ruled Thursday that the state's lethal injection procedures are not cruel and unusual, which could clear the way for an execution scheduled for this month. The justices wrote that "we reject the conclusion that lethal injection as applied in Florida is unconstitutional." The decision was unanimous.

Lethal injection procedures are also under review by the U.S. Supreme Court. The high court has allowed only one execution to be carried out since it agreed in September to hear a case from Kentucky that raises a similar challenge.

The state Supreme Court ruled that Florida's lethal injection procedure doesn't violate the constitutional ban on cruel and unusual punishment, particularly since safeguards were put in place after a problematic December execution.

-- David Royse, Associated Press