In the state of Alabama, a death row inmate was executed with nitrogen gas for the first time in American history. Murder inmate Kenneth Smith was killed Thursday evening using the controversial new execution method at Atmore City Prison, Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall announced. The 58-year-old was pronounced dead at 8:25 p.m. local time, 29 minutes after the execution began.
The United Nations had previously condemned Alabama’s actions, calling it possible “torture” for using an execution method that had never before been tested. In so-called nitrogen hypoxia, the prisoner is given pure nitrogen through a face mask, as a result of which he can no longer breathe oxygen and dies.
Alabama is one of three US states that allow executions with nitrogen gas. However, this method had never been used in the US before.
Contract killing in 1988
Smith was sentenced to death after killing a pastor’s wife on behalf of a pastor in 1988. The death sentence would be carried out by lethal injection in 2022. At that time, prison staff could not gain access to administer the poison.
“Everyone tells me I will suffer”
Therefore, Smith was now executed with nitrogen gas. Several attempts to stop the execution by legal means had previously failed, including at the Supreme Court in Washington. Smith said in a radio interview in December that he was incredibly afraid of the execution. He is still ‘traumatized’ by the failed execution attempt in 2022. ‘Everyone says I am going to suffer.’
UN spokeswoman condemns the execution method
A spokeswoman for the UN Human Rights Commissioner in Geneva, Ravina Shamdasani, last week condemned the planned use of the “new and untested” execution method. This could amount to “torture or inhuman or degrading punishment or treatment” under international law.
The state of Alabama argued in a court document that the use of nitrogen gas was “perhaps the most humane method of execution ever devised.” Nitrogen gas is sometimes used to kill animals.
US: Last year, 24 death sentences were carried out
The US is one of the few industrialized countries where people are still executed. Last year, 24 death sentences were carried out in the country, all involving lethal injections. The last time a prisoner was executed with gas in the US was in 1999. Hydrogen cyanide, also called hydrogen cyanide or hydrogen cyanide, was used at the time.
The death penalty is controversial in the US. According to a poll by the Gallup polling institute, 53 percent of Americans support the death penalty for convicted murderers. This is the lowest value since 1972.
Source: Krone
I am Wallace Jones, an experienced journalist. I specialize in writing for the world section of Today Times Live. With over a decade of experience, I have developed an eye for detail when it comes to reporting on local and global stories. My passion lies in uncovering the truth through my investigative skills and creating thought-provoking content that resonates with readers worldwide.
