Mocobizscene- On January 25th, officials from the Alabama Department of Corrections (ADOC) will secure Kenneth Eugene Smith to a gurney at the Holman Correctional Facility and administer pure nitrogen into his lungs.
“They want me to trust them,” Dr. Hood expressed in an interview with The Independent. “The issue is, they have a unreliable track record.”
Dr Hood insists that his religious liberties are being violated by denying him the constitutional right to anoint Smith with oil and administer his last rites.
On December 13th, he took legal action by filing a lawsuit in Alabama challenging the state’s authority to keep him away from the execution. In the past year, the anti-death penalty activist from Texas has guided numerous death row prisoners and has also been present during four executions in Oklahoma, Texas, and Alabama.
Alabama’s troubled history of botched executions has raised concerns among proponents of the death penalty regarding the potential risks associated with being the first state to adopt nitrogen asphyxia.
‘Distressing for some species’
Governor Kay Ivey has temporarily halted executions in the state and has directed an internal review of the procedures.
Gov. Ivey ordered the Alabama Department of Corrections (ADOC) to conduct an internal review, in contrast to other states like Tennessee that sought independent advisers to investigate their use of lethal injection after experiencing botched executions.
Commissioner John Hamm stated in his report published in February that the department is fully prepared to resume executions. When challenging a method of execution, prisoners are required by the state to propose an alternative.
To date, the method of execution known as “nitrogen hypoxia” has yet to be utilized on a death row inmate in the United States, or anywhere else, as far as experts are aware. While this approach is legal in three states, its practical application remains untested.
The American Veterinary Medical Association has taken a strong stance against the use of this method to euthanize almost all mammals, as it is deemed distressing for these animals. However, it is still employed in the US for the purpose of killing poultry.
Smith took legal action in September by filing a lawsuit, urging judges to reject Alabama’s proposal of executing him through the use of an untested method.
“I am grateful that our skilled capital litigators have almost brought this case to its conclusion, although the wait has been excessively long.”
‘Abject incompetence’
Nitrogen hypoxia may sound scientific, but it is not a recognized medical term. According to Joel Zivot, an expert on lethal injection and associate professor of anesthesiology at Emory University, it is simply a made-up expression used to describe the deprivation of oxygen using nitrogen gas (The Independent).
According to Dr. Zivot, it appears that the focus is not on the experience of the dying person, despite the fact that it is crucial in the context of the law.
“This entire situation revolves around the witness experience. What is the perception? Some believe that nitrogen will cause a relatively gentle and inconspicuous death. However, I hold reservations about this viewpoint.”
There are still many questions surrounding the effectiveness of the nitrogen dose in achieving a humane death.
Dr. Zivot is interested in understanding the specific procedure for administering nitrogen. He is curious whether the prisoner will be provided with an anaesthetic during the process. If an anaesthetic is not given, Dr. Zivot wants to know how the prisoner’s compliance will be ensured.
Alabama has chosen not to disclose any information thus far.
According to Dr. Zivot, there have been studies conducted on the use of nitrogen gas to deprive healthy individuals of oxygen. These studies found that after approximately 15 or 20 seconds, around 80% of participants experienced seizures.
Inmates have found ways to manipulate the situation, such as pretending to hold their breath or intentionally moving their head to dislodge the mask.
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