- Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall praises flawless execution of convicted murderer Kenneth Eugene Smith using nitrogen hypoxia, the first time this method was used.
- Smith’s request for nitrogen hypoxia followed a botched lethal injection in 2022, with his attorneys arguing he was a test subject and activists criticizing the untested method.
- Despite legal challenges, the Supreme Court ruled that Alabama was within its constitutional rights to proceed with the execution, prompting Marshall to offer apologies to the victim’s family and express belief that other states will adopt this method.
Additional Coverage:
Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall stated in a news conference on Friday that the execution of convicted murderer Kenneth Eugene Smith using nitrogen hypoxia was executed flawlessly. This marked the first time that nitrogen hypoxia was used as a method of execution. Nitrogen hypoxia involves forcing an individual to inhale pure nitrogen or lethal concentrations of it through a gas mask to cause asphyxiation.
Smith had requested this method of execution after surviving a botched lethal injection in 2022. However, his attorneys argued that he was being used as a “test subject,” and human rights activists criticized the use of the untried new method. Despite legal challenges, the Supreme Court ruled on Wednesday that Alabama was within its constitutional rights to proceed with the execution.
Marshall acknowledged that the execution couldn’t be considered “justice” for the family of Elizabeth Sennett, the victim whom Smith was convicted of killing in 1989, due to the long delay in carrying out the sentence. Smith was one of two men who received payment from Sennett’s husband to kill her. Sennett’s husband committed suicide a week after the killing. Marshall offered apologies to the couple’s sons for the manner in which their mother lost her life and the time it took for the sentence to be carried out.
Marshall revealed that 43 other inmates on death row in Alabama have requested execution by nitrogen hypoxia. He believes that other states will follow Alabama’s lead in adopting this method and offered assistance to states interested in implementing it.