WASHINGTON, D.C. - The US Supreme Court has cleared the way for Iowa convicted killer Dustin Honken to be executed.
This morning, the court refused to block the execution of four federal prisoners, including Honken, who are scheduled to be put to death in July and August.
Honken was a northern Iowa drug dealer facing federal drug charges in 1993 when he shot and killed five people, including two children.
He was convicted of the murders and given the death penalty in 2004, and a district judge upheld the ruling in 2013. All of his appeals have been exhausted.
A District Judge in Washington, D.C., issued a preliminary injunction in November which blocked Honken's execution and as well as the other three prisoners.
Attorney General William Barr announced last year that the federal government would carry out executions for the first time since 2003.
Honken's execution is scheduled for July 17 at the U.S. Penitentiary in Terre Haute, Indiana.