Posted on 01/25/2024 9:08:57 PM PST by RandFan
Alabama has executed convicted murderer Kenneth Eugene Smith with nitrogen gas, the first time the method of capital punishment has been used in the US.
Smith, 58, lost two final appeals to the Supreme Court and one to a federal appeals court, arguing the execution was a cruel and unusual punishment.
In 2022, Alabama tried and failed to execute Smith by lethal injection.
He was convicted in 1989 of murdering a preacher's wife, Elizabeth Sennett, in a killing-for-hire.
According to the Death Penalty Information Center, Smith is the first person to be put to death using pure nitrogen gas anywhere in the world.
Five members of the media were transported by van to Holman Correctional Facility in Atmore to witness the execution.
"Tonight Alabama causes humanity to take a step backwards," Smith said, according to witnesses. "Thank you for supporting me. Love all of you."
After the gas began to flow into his mask, the inmate is said to have smiled, nodded toward his family and signed "I love you".
Witnesses observed two to four minutes of writhing and about five minutes of heavy breathing before he was pronounced dead at 20:25 local time (02:35 GMT).
Breathing nitrogen without oxygen causes cells in the body to break down and leads to death.
Alabama Governor Kay Ivey, who did not respond to a request to attend the execution, confirmed Smith's death in a statement.
"After more than 30 years and attempt after attempt to game the system, Mr Smith has answered for his horrendous crimes," she said.
"I pray that Elizabeth Sennett's family can receive closure after all these years dealing with that great loss."
Attorney General Steve Marshall said it had proved to be "an effective and humane method of execution", refuting the "dire predictions" of activists and the media.
(Excerpt) Read more at bbc.co.uk ...
Doesn’t carbon dioxide just cause the person to go to sleep
and never wake up?
Why not use that?
Perhaps someone can explain.
c’mo man, Almighty God required two witnesses for a death penalty and we require much more than that.
It is NOT blood lust, it is JUSTICE .
You got a problem with that?
the body reacts to too much CO2. Think of those trapped in mines or Apollo 13. The body does not react to too much nitrogen which is 80% of the air in normally.
In both cases the person is passing out and then dying from a lack of oxygen, not from the presence of CO2 or nitrogen.
Yeah, I have a problem with with our corrupt law system.
Did my post against our corrupt law system, which has grand juries,juries, prosecutors, judges, detectives, who have wrongly imprisoned & murdered innocent people unclear?
How would you like to lose 10 years of life in prison on a rape you didn’t commit because everybody got it wrong?
You cool with it?
“Is this the same gas that was used on the Jews in WWII?”
You don’t know what Nitrogen is?
nitrogen does that. medically educate yourself
No, I’m not cool with it.
I know we have an EXTREMELY corrupt criminal “justice” system, but that does not excuse granting murderers non payment for their crimes , which by the time is up , there is NO doubt as to their guilt.
I think the funky chicken routine was before the gas started flowing, and maybe immediately afterward. The perp was bound and determined his death was going to be a statement regarding the cruelty of the death penalty.
/The Wallace wept
you obviously didn’t see the /s on the post!
Can you get “The Bends” in Hell?
We found common ground and agreement, which is a good thing.
BTW I’m not an abolish the death penalty advocate(The death penalty needs to be on the books) However, it better be used wisely & on people that are guilty and Never innocent.
,,, what’s amazing is the decades of cost to taxpayers in keeping this guy confined until he was finally iced.
Yes,
(glad I just read your post as I was about to go all righteously righteous on the last (:
I hope the experience was extremely uncomfortable.
Thanks...
I tossed it out and you didn’t state why that is better than
carbon dioxide.
A poster above did. Thanks anyway.
We're going completely in the wrong direction here. We should develop and use the funniest joke on earth, so that the death row inmate dies of laughter. Surely, we can agree that laughing to death would be painless. Indeed, it would be Fun!
If this method worked in the 1940's, it can work just fine today.
Not at all! The victim writhes, contorts his facial features and struggles for air. It's a cruel and vicious death!
In Switzerland one of the “new” methods of euthanasia or assisted suicide is to use a “pod” that fills with nitrogen gas and results in a rapid drop of oxygen levels and quick death.
What the state is doing is not technically that different and should provide no greater suffering than what people who want to end their life pay serious money for.
https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-59577162
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.