Alabama requests more executions by nitrogen gas, despite controversy over the method’s effectiveness.
Alabama is pushing forward with plans to use nitrogen gas in future executions, months after it became the first state to carry out an execution using this untested method. On Monday, the state’s attorney general petitioned the Alabama Supreme Court to set an execution date for Carey Dale Grayson, convicted of the 1994 murder of Vickie Deblieux. If the court approves the request, Grayson’s execution would become the third to use nitrogen gas.
The state’s use of nitrogen gas began in January with the execution of Kenneth Smith, which sparked concern due to its unusual and painful nature. Smith experienced seizure-like convulsions for over two minutes while strapped to the gurney, followed by several minutes of gasping for breath. This raised alarms among death penalty advocates who argue that the method contradicts the state’s promise of a quick and painless death. Despite this, Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall defended the execution, calling it “textbook,” and offered assistance to other states considering the method.
In Alabama, lethal injection remains the primary method of execution, but inmates can request nitrogen gas or the electric chair as alternatives. Since Smith’s execution, several inmates have requested nitrogen as their preferred method, prompting the state to seek execution dates for those inmates. The push for nitrogen gas executions continues despite ongoing litigation and skepticism over its reliability and humaneness.
While Alabama is forging ahead with nitrogen gas executions, the controversy surrounding Smith’s death has intensified the debate over the method’s safety. Advocates for prisoners have raised concerns about its potential for botched executions, and some have called for a halt to its use until more is known about its effects. The state’s decision to continue using nitrogen gas, however, signals a growing commitment to the new method, even in the face of serious objections.