- Convicted murderer Kenneth Eugene Smith was executed in Alabama using a new method that resulted in a horrifyingly painful reaction.
- Smith became the first inmate to be executed by suffocation with nitrogen hypoxia.
- Witnesses, including Smith’s wife and pastor, were traumatized by the execution, which lasted 18 minutes and was described as the worst thing witnessed by his spiritual guide.
Additional Coverage:
Convicted murderer Kenneth Eugene Smith was executed on Thursday by the state of Alabama using a new method that resulted in a horrifically painful reaction. Smith’s wife and pastor were present to witness the execution and were undoubtedly traumatized by what they saw.
Smith was taken to the execution chamber at the William C. Holman Correctional Facility in Atmore, where he was restrained and had a gas mask placed over his face. This new method involved suffocating him with nitrogen hypoxia, and Smith became the first inmate to be executed using this procedure.
Before the execution began at 8:07 PM CST, Smith made a heart sign to his family and delivered his final words through his mask, expressing his belief that Alabama was taking a step backward in terms of humanity. He said he was leaving with love, peace, and light.
What followed over the next 18 minutes was a nightmare for Smith, his wife Deanna, and his spiritual guide Jeff Hood, both of whom were present as witnesses. Hood later described the execution as the worst thing he had ever seen, causing even the prison officials to gasp in shock. Smith’s death was much slower than anticipated, and he began convulsing and popping up on the gurney after inhaling high concentrations of nitrogen hypoxia.
Deanna cried out for her dying husband as he desperately grabbed at his restraints, taking his final breaths before suffocating. Smith had been sentenced to death in 1996 for killing Elizabeth Sennett, the wife of a preacher, as part of a $1,000 murder-for-hire plot.
Smith was declared dead at 8:25 PM CST at the age of 58.