The U.S. Supreme Court has refused to lift a stay of execution of a convicted Florida quadruple-murderer while the justices review the drug mixture used in lethal injections.

The high court issued a one-page ruling Wednesday in Washington rejecting a request by Florida officials to allow the execution of Jerry Correll to proceed. Correll had been scheduled to die Thursday for the 1985 killings in Orlando of his ex-wife, daughter and two other people.

The stay was initially granted Feb. 17 by the Florida Supreme Court because scheduled executions in Oklahoma had been halted while the U.S. Supreme Court determines if a sedative used in executions is effective. Florida uses the same sedative, midazolam.

The Florida Supreme Court previously reviewed the use of midazolam and found it to be effective.