After months of legal battles and a petition submitted on the day of execution, Alabama executed Kenneth Eugene Smith via nitrogen gas. He is the first person in the United States who has been killed using this untested, highly controversial method. Smith, who was convicted of a 1988 murder-for-hire plot, was executed by nitrogen gas on Thursday at 8:25 pm.
[[{“value”:”Kenneth Eugene Smith was the first person in the United States to be killed by nitrogen gas after months of constitutional battles, including a last-minute petition on the day of the execution. Smith had been found guilty of murder-for-hire plot in 1988. Smith was declared dead on Thursday at 8:25 p.m. after being strapped to a gurney and made to breathe in an extremely devastating amount of nitrogen through mask. Smith, who had survived an unsuccessful execution over the previous year, was pronounced dead.
Yet, state officials underestimated how long the execution would take. Smith appeared aware for at least two minutes while the poisonous gas flowed, his eyes rolling into the back of his head as he fiercely shook and gasped for air, despite the state Attorney General’s claim in court documents that Smith would lose consciousness within seconds.
” In 30 seconds, we did n’t see anyone go unconscious. Minutes of someone fighting for their life were all we saw, Rev. PBS was informed by Jeff Hood, Smith’s religious advisor and a witness to the execution. Additionally, John Q. Hamm of the Alabama Department of Corrections claimed that” a hiccup on the EKG line” prevented a clear reading during the 45-minute delay before the execution. Despite these differences, Alabama officials praised Smith’s execution as a success.
At a press conference held after the execution, Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall stated that “nitrogen]hypoxia” is no longer an unproven method because it has been proven to be effective as of last night. Human rights activists and health professionals voiced their concerns about the new method in the months leading up to Smith’s execution, citing the state of Alabama and its notorious history of shoddy executions, including the execution attempt Smith had formerly failed to carry out in 2022. As I stated yesterday:
Because prison staff failed to set Smith’s IV line and were unable to kill him before his death warrant expired, his past execution did not go as planned. Alabama would eventually stop carrying out executions until July 2023 as a result of this setback and two other mishandled killings.
Smith said,” Now, Alabama caused humanity to take a step back,” just before he passed away, but the mask obscured his next words. I adore each and every one of you. I appreciate you supporting me. I adore each and every one of you.”}]] Kenneth Eugene Smith was the first person in the United States to be killed by nitrogen gas after months of constitutional battles, including a last-minute petition on the day of the execution. Smith had been found guilty of murder-for-hire plot in 1988. At 8:25 p.m. on Thursday, Smith, who
After months of legal battles and a petition submitted on the day of execution, Alabama executed Kenneth Eugene Smith via nitrogen gas. He is the first person in the United States who has been killed using this untested, highly controversial method. Smith, who was convicted of a 1988 murder-for-hire plot, was executed by nitrogen gas on Thursday at 8:25 pm.
FILE – Alabama’s lethal injection chamber at Holman Correctional Facility in Atmore, Ala., is pictured in this Oct. 7, 2002 file photo. Kenneth Smith, 58, is scheduled to be executed Jan. 25, 2024, at a south Alabama prison by nitrogen gas, a method that has never been used to put a person to death. The 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals will hear arguments Friday, Jan. 19, in Smith’s bid to stop the execution from going forward. (AP Photo/File)AP Photo File. Fight disinformation: Sign up for the free Mother Jones Daily newsletter and follow the news that matters.. After months of legal battles, including a last-minute petition on the day of the execution, Alabama has executed Kenneth Eugene Smith, a man convicted in a 1988 murder-for-hire plot, via nitrogen gas—making him the first man in the United States to be killed by that untested and highly controversial method. On Thursday, at 8:25 p.m., Smith, who survived a botched execution more than a year ago, was pronounced dead after being strapped to a gurney and forced to breathe in a lethal amount of nitrogen through a mask.. However, the execution took much longer than state officials predicted. Despite the state Attorney General claiming in court documents that Smith would lose consciousness within seconds, witnesses said that the 58-year-old appeared conscious for at least two minutes while the toxic gas flowed, his eyes rolling into the back of his head while he shook violently and gasped for air.. “We didn’t see somebody go unconscious in 30 seconds. What we saw was minutes of someone struggling for their life,” Rev. Jeff Hood, Smith’s spiritual adviser and a witness to the execution, told PBS. There was also reportedly a 45-minute delay prior to the execution that Alabama Department of Corrections Commissioner John Q. Hamm blamed on “a hiccup on the EKG line” that hindered a clear reading. Despite these discrepancies, Alabama officials called Smith’s execution a success.. “As of last night, nitrogen [hypoxia] as a means of execution is no longer an untested method,” said Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall at a press conference following the execution, “it is a proven one.” In the months leading up to Smith’s execution, human rights advocates and medical professionals expressed concerns about the new method, citing Alabama’s sordid history of sloppy executions, including Smith’s previously botched execution attempt in 2022. As I wrote yesterday:. Smith’s previous execution did not go according to plan because prison employees failed to set his IV line, and were unable to kill him before his death warrant expired. This setback, alongside two other botched killings, would eventually cause Alabama to pause executions until July 2023.. Before his death, Smith’s last words, muffled by the mask, were: “Tonight, Alabama caused humanity to take a step backward. I love all of you. Thank you for supporting me. I love all of you.”
