Virginia has put all executions on hold until the US Supreme Court decides whether lethal injections are constitutional.
Governor Timothy Kaine ordered the moratorium in delaying the scheduled April 8 execution of convicted police killer Edward Nathaniel Bell until July 24.
It is the 30th such stay of execution across the United States since September, when the Supreme Court agreed to hear a Kentucky case that challenged the constitutionality of lethal injections.
Other executions are not being scheduled pending the ruling, expected in late June.
"That's the pattern all over the country -- dates are not being set," Richard Dieter, executive director of the Death Penalty Information Centre, said.
Virginia is among 35 states that use lethal injection.