Smith, 58, was declared dead at the Holman Correctional Facility in Alabama at 8:25 p.m. on Thursday (02:25 GMT on Friday), according to officials. Smith had been exposed to pure nitrogen gas through a face mask, depriving him of oxygen which is called as nitrogen gas execution.
Accused murderer Kenneth Smith became the first person in US history to be executed through asphyxiation (asphyxiation is a condition of deficient supply of oxygen to the body which arises from abnormal breathing ) with nitrogen gas.
How was he executed?
Since the introduction of the most widely used method of execution lethal injection in 1982, his death represents the first occasion that a new technique has been utilized in the United States.
Alabama has called its new protocol “the most painless and humane method of execution known to man” is nitrogen gas execution .
Once a convicted murderer was executed in the United States in 1999, hydrogen cyanide gas was used to carry out the execution.
Along with Oklahoma and Mississippi, Alabama is one of the three US states that have authorized this nitrogen gas execution
According to the Associated Press news agency, Smith seemed to thrash and shake on the stretcher for a few minutes, occasionally struggling against the chains during his roughly 22-minutes for nitrogen gas execution. After that, there was intense breathing for a few minutes until it was no longer noticeable.
What was Smith’s last response?
In a final statement ahead of his nitrogen gas execution, Smith said: “Tonight, Alabama causes humanity to take a step backwards. … I’m leaving with love, peace and light.”
Governor Kay Ivey of Alabama said that Elizabeth Sennett, 45, was killed in March 1988 as a murder victim for hire, and that her death was a just punishment.
“After more than 30 years and numerous attempts to circumvent the system, Mr. Smith has provided an explanation for his heinous crimes. In a statement released after Smith’s execution, she said, “I pray that Elizabeth Sennett’s family can receive closure after all these years dealing with that great loss.”
Smith was found not guilty in 1989, but in 1996, his conviction was upheld. A judge overruled the jury’s 11-1 recommendation for a life sentence and gave him the death penalty.
A judge in Alabama can no longer overturn a jury’s decision to apply the capital penalty. In 2023, there were twenty-four executions conducted by lethal injection in the United States.
Numerous reactions are seen against this nitrogen gas execution.
Why was he convicted?
The jury that found Mr. Smith guilty of murder in 1996 also decided 11 to 1 to sentence him to life in prison rather than death, but the judge reversed their vote, making Mr. Smith’s case unusual. Since then, every state has prohibited courts from overturning juries’ recommendations for life sentences, including Alabama. However, the new statute does not apply to instances from the past.
The Rev. Jeff Hood, who was present in the room during Mr. Smith’s nitrogen gas execution, described what he saw as “minutes of someone struggling for their life.”
Earlier on Thursday, he had stated that Mr. Smith feared greatly that the nitrogen gas execution might go awry. Before the nitrogen gas execution, Mr. Hood stated, “He’s terrified that this thing is going to completely torture him.”
