Death penalty

[Fab Foodie]

' “Smith writhed and convulsed on the gurney. He took deep breaths, his body shaking violently with his eyes rolling in the back of his head.”
Roney’s report continued: “Smith clenched his fists, his legs shook … He seemed to be gasping for air. The gurney shook several times.”
Rev. Jeff Hood, Smith’s spiritual adviser, was at Smith’s side for the execution, and said prison officials in the room “were visibly surprised at how bad this thing went.” '

'Justice Sonia Sotomayor, who along with two other liberal justices dissented, wrote: “Having failed to kill Smith on its first attempt ', Alabama has selected him as its ‘guinea pig’ to test a method of execution never attempted before. The world is watching.”

Smith said "Tonight, Alabama caused humanity to take a step backwards," Smith said. "I'm leaving with love, peace and light. Thank you for supporting me, love all of you.". Media witnesses said Smith appeared conscious for about ten minutes. (NPR)
https://www.npr.org/2024/01/25/1226936713/alabama-execution-kenneth-smith?ft=nprml&f=191676894

As I said, sick.

We were informed that people who unknowingly were rendered unconscious by N2 (including animals) simply 'faint' and if not very quickly resuscitated are gone. Never heard during our training and accident/near miss reporting of anything like gasping or struggling for breath, never.
Am not saying that it didn't happen but am a little sceptical based on previous training (and our team worked on gas stunning of pigs and poultry)....
Best thing is simply not to do it in the first place.

I bet Alabama's banned abortion....

 

[Deleted member 121]

Smith was contract killer, deserved execution. Don't care how it was done, nitrogen seems a more kinder way than many other options.

He was. Smith had a choice. He didn't have to kill the poor woman. Similarly, the state of alabama had a choice. They also didn't have to kill. But instead of leading by example, they followed in smiths footsteps and also killed. They have more in common than they realise...

 

[AndyRM]

I bet Alabama's banned abortion....

Some time ago.

 

[Poacher]

Some time ago.

With no exception for rape or incest, of course.

 

[AndyRM]

With no exception for rape or incest, of course.

Mmm. Of all the states I've visited, it was definitely one of the weirder ones.

ETA: I was in full goth mode the times I was there, so I can't exactly say I wasn't one of the weirder ones myself.

 

[Fab Foodie]

Some time ago.

Kerching...which just goes to show what a fcukedup country the USA is these days....

 

[Ian H]

Oh, absolutely agree. The whole thing is barbaric.

Some more detail from Albion Bye's link. It seems that even the sentencing wasn't straightforward -
Smith's path to the death chamber has not been straightforward. After he was brought to trial in 1989, 10 of 12 jury members voted that he should receive the death penalty. But that conviction was later reversed when it was revealed that prosecutors had unconstitutionally struck Black jurors from the pool. Black people have historically been less supportive of capital punishment than white Americans.
When Smith was retried in 1996, all but one juror voted against the death penalty and recommended he spend life in prison instead. But the trial judge, Pride Tompkins, overruled the jury and imposed a death sentence. The Alabama statute that allowed judges to override jury recommendations has since been replaced; Smith would have been sentenced to life in prison had 11 of 12 jurors voted as they did during his second trial.

 

[Fab Foodie]

Some more detail from Albion Bye's link. It seems that even the sentencing wasn't straightforward -
Smith's path to the death chamber has not been straightforward. After he was brought to trial in 1989, 10 of 12 jury members voted that he should receive the death penalty. But that conviction was later reversed when it was revealed that prosecutors had unconstitutionally struck Black jurors from the pool. Black people have historically been less supportive of capital punishment than white Americans.
When Smith was retried in 1996, all but one juror voted against the death penalty and recommended he spend life in prison instead. But the trial judge, Pride Tompkins, overruled the jury and imposed a death sentence. The Alabama statute that allowed judges to override jury recommendations has since been replaced; Smith would have been sentenced to life in prison had 11 of 12 jurors voted as they did during his second trial.

FFS....

 

[ebikeerwidnes]

Isn't the best option not to execute people?

Of course not

The good thing about the death penalty is that all the ones that are wrongly convicted don;t go round winging about it for years on end

 

[Beebo]

Some more detail from Albion Bye's link. It seems that even the sentencing wasn't straightforward -
Smith's path to the death chamber has not been straightforward. After he was brought to trial in 1989, 10 of 12 jury members voted that he should receive the death penalty. But that conviction was later reversed when it was revealed that prosecutors had unconstitutionally struck Black jurors from the pool. Black people have historically been less supportive of capital punishment than white Americans.
When Smith was retried in 1996, all but one juror voted against the death penalty and recommended he spend life in prison instead. But the trial judge, Pride Tompkins, overruled the jury and imposed a death sentence. The Alabama statute that allowed judges to override jury recommendations has since been replaced; Smith would have been sentenced to life in prison had 11 of 12 jurors voted as they did during his second trial.

Just listening to some background to this story.

The judge who overturned the 11-1 jury decision was facing reelection so felt he had to go for the death penalty. Isn’t that a perfect example of keeping politics out of the legal system.

The most shocking thing is that the man who hired Smith as a hit man to kill his wife was a Pastor in Alabama. Ahem to that!
He committed suicide before the law caught with him.

 

[albion]

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2024/sep/26/alabama-nitrogen-gas-execution-alan-miller

Grotesque evil in Alabama.

 

[AndyRM]

There was some vaguely positive death penalty news the other day in Japan.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c5y9x6zrkrro

Although what good it'll do the fella at his age, and the toll it must have taken on his sister means it's not all that brilliant I suppose? Having your name cleared in Japanese society is a pretty big deal though, so that's a good thing.

 

[Beebo]

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2024/sep/26/alabama-nitrogen-gas-execution-alan-miller

Grotesque evil in Alabama.

I don’t know if nitrogen is a suitable way to kill somebody.
But there is a company in Switzerland doing just that.

https://www.theguardian.com/society...zerland-over-suicide-capsule-death-police-say

 

[ebikeerwidnes]

I don’t know if nitrogen is a suitable way to kill somebody.
But there is a company in Switzerland doing just that.

https://www.theguardian.com/society...zerland-over-suicide-capsule-death-police-say

Apparently there is a huge difference between using nitrogen via a mask to someone who does NOT want to be killed
and someone who genuinely wants to end their life for (to them) good reasons in a capsule

The fact that the guy in Alabama has previously had a failed execution attempt where they tried many times to get an IV tube in and failed only makes it worse
added to that the newspaper articles say that there seems to be doubt his actual guilt - and when he was being executed he again claimed to be innocent - at least of the main charge

Still - that is the way it works in that state

seems barbaric to me

 

[Beebo]

Apparently there is a huge difference between using nitrogen via a mask to someone who does NOT want to be killed
and someone who genuinely wants to end their life for (to them) good reasons in a capsule

The fact that the guy in Alabama has previously had a failed execution attempt where they tried many times to get an IV tube in and failed only makes it worse
added to that the newspaper articles say that there seems to be doubt his actual guilt - and when he was being executed he again claimed to be innocent - at least of the main charge

Still - that is the way it works in that state

seems barbaric to me

I’m not here to deny whether or not it’s barbaric. Just and observation that the same method is being used for two different proposes. For the record I’m against any form of capital punishment.
I can understand there is a huge difference between someone facing death as a peaceful end and accepting their fate compared to someone fighting for life til the bitter end due to an injustice.
One will die peacefully, the other will go down fighting. Especially if they use a slow acting process like nitrogen. A swift bullet to the head would seem more humane to me.