First Time In US: Alabama Set To Make History With Controversial Nitrogen Gas Execution

Kenneth Eugene Smith, a convict on death row in Alabama, is set to be executed using nitrogen gas. This is a first for the United States.

What Happened: NBC News reported that the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled in favor of the state’s decision, dismissing the argument that the method violates the constitutional ban on cruel and unusual punishment. The execution is scheduled for Thursday, barring any last-minute legal or state intervention.

The 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has given the green light for Alabama to proceed with its plan to carry out the first execution in the U.S. using nitrogen gas. The court’s decision was made on Wednesday despite concerns that the method might violate the constitutional prohibition on cruel and unusual punishment.

Nitrogen hypoxia is a method that involves the individual breathing only nitrogen, resulting in death due to oxygen deprivation.

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The majority ruling from the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals aligns with a previous decision made by a federal judge in Alabama earlier this month. The judge had sided with the state Corrections Department in its pursuit of using nitrogen gas in Smith’s execution.

Why It Matters: The decision to proceed with the execution by nitrogen gas has raised concerns about the untested nature of the method. Circuit Judge Jill Pryor, in a dissenting opinion, expressed apprehension about the potential impact on Smith’s human dignity.

The use of nitrogen gas for executions was approved in Alabama in 2018, as the availability of the necessary drugs for lethal injection had become increasingly scarce. Smith, who was initially set to be executed by lethal injection in November 2022, had the execution postponed due to difficulties in finding a suitable vein. This, along with other issues related to lethal injection in Alabama, led to a temporary halt in all executions in the state.

The decision to proceed with the nitrogen gas execution has sparked a flurry of legal filings, with Smith’s legal team expressing concerns about potential risks and the state discrediting these claims as speculative.

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