American Kenneth Eugene Smith was sentenced to death in 1996 for murder-for-hire in 1988. The first execution attempt with lethal injection failed, and now the 58-year-old must be executed with nitrogen – a method that has never before been used in humans. Smith’s lawyers fought it to the end. But now they have also failed to stop the execution before the US Supreme Court.
Smith is expected to die on Thursday (local time in the US state of Alabama) due to so-called nitrogen hypoxia. In these types of executions, a person is administered nitrogen through a face mask – the result is death from lack of oxygen. A death sentence has never been carried out in this way in the US. According to a spokeswoman, the UN Human Rights Office is not aware of any other similar cases.
Human rights experts from the United Nations and Amnesty International warn of a potentially gruesome death. There is therefore no scientific evidence that breathing in pure nitrogen does not cause serious suffering. Smith’s lawyers also refer to this.
Attempted execution by lethal injection failed
The convicted man was scheduled to be executed by lethal injection in 2022. However, prison staff were unable to place the necessary cannula in his arm. He was returned to his cell after spending several hours on an execution table.
Source: Krone
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