Skip to main content
Supreme Court Case Tracker

Emergency application · Capital case

Stephen C. Stanko v. Joel E. Anderson, Interim Director, South Carolina Department of Corrections

Denied
No. 24A1231Stay applicationFiled by a prisoner facing executionPresented to The Chief JusticeFrom United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit

What did the Court do?

The Court denied the request on June 13, 2025 and refused to halt the execution.

Emergency rulings are temporary and do not decide the underlying case.

Filed Ruled 1 day after filing

What's being asked

A prisoner facing execution asks the Supreme Court to halt (stay) an execution. The case is Stephen C. Stanko v. Joel E. Anderson, Interim Director, South Carolina Department of Corrections.

What the Court did

Application (24A1231) for stay of execution of sentence of death presented to The Chief Justice and by him referred to the Court is denied.

Vote not published · 9the order does not say how they voted
  1. Thomas
  2. Roberts
  3. Alito
  4. Sotomayor
  5. Kagan
  6. Gorsuch
  7. Kavanaugh
  8. Barrett
  9. Jackson
The order does not say how any justice voted, as is usual on the emergency docket.
Days from filing to a ruling for 41 rulings on capital applications decided without a response since January 1, 2025. The band is the middle half, the tick the median, and the mark this application: ruled 1 day after filing.

What it means

The Court's refusal leaves the execution to go forward as scheduled unless another court or official halts it.

Sources

Facts on this page come from the Supreme Court docket, orders, and opinions for No. 24A1231. The answers restate that record in plain words; explainer copy is written from the record and the filings only.

Checked September 24, 2026