On the 25th, the southern US state of Alabama executed a death row inmate by inhaling nitrogen gas. This was the first execution in the United States using nitrogen gas. This method has been criticized as inhumane and uses prisoners as guinea pigs, and the United Nations has appealed for an end to the practice, saying it could violate treaties against torture.
The person who was executed was Kenneth Eugene Smith (58), a death row inmate who was convicted of the 1988 murder of a woman.Alabama corrections officials opened on Wednesday night.Press conferenceSmith was pronounced dead at 8:25 p.m. local time.
During the execution, Smith was restrained on a stretcher and forced to breathe in nitrogen gas while wearing a mask, depriving him of oxygen.
Reporters who witnessed the incident said Smith appeared conscious for several minutes after the nitrogen gas was flushed through his mask and was “visibly shivering and squirming” on the stretcher.
One of the reporters, Lee Hegepes, told the New York Times, “A few minutes after the execution began, Smith’s head was bobbing up and down violently,” adding, “Smith was one of only 5 people present at an execution in Alabama. “This is the first time I’ve seen such a violent reaction during an execution,” he said, expressing his surprise.
The state had said the nitrogen gas method would cause unconsciousness almost immediately, but reporters said Smith appeared to stop breathing after the nitrogen gas was pumped in at 7:58 p.m. reported 10 minutes later at 8:08 p.m.
A state correctional official told reporters that Smith may have been “holding his breath for as long as he could” and that his struggles against his restraints were “involuntary movements.”
“Tonight, Alabama takes a step back in humanity,” Smith reportedly said shortly before the execution.
Alabama authorities attempted to execute Smith by lethal injection in November 2022, but the attempt failed. Smith was reportedly injected with needles multiple times and was in severe pain. State authorities then decided to re-execute the death penalty using nitrogen gas.
Smith sued for an injunction, but a federal judge this month allowed the state to execute him using nitrogen gas. Smith has filed two challenges to the U.S. Supreme Court, arguing that re-execution and nitrogen gas inhalation violate the Eighth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which prohibits the imposition of cruel and unusual punishment. However, both were rejected.
Liberal Justice Sonia Sotomayor of the U.S. Supreme Court responded to the Supreme Court’s ruling on the 25th.opposite opinion“Alabama, which failed to kill Smith the first time, chose him as a “guinea pig” to test an execution method that had never been tried before.”
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2024-01-27 03:30:08
