NH Supreme Court Set to Rule on Fairness of Death Sentence

New Hampshire's highest court is set to issue its ruling on the fairness of the death sentence of the state's lone death row inmate.

The justices could topple the death sentence given Michael Addison for the 2006 killing of Manchester police officer Michael Briggs, or they could deem it fair when compared to death sentences handed down in similar cases nationwide.

The ruling, to be released at 9 a.m. Thursday, marks the first time the state Supreme Court has ruled on the fairness of a death sentence.

Lawyers for Addison argued in January that the killing lacked the brutality and multiple shots of many other cases and that Addison was not deemed a threat to others if a life sentence was imposed.

The last execution in New Hampshire took place in 1939.