Louisiana is hurtling toward the execution of Jessie Hoffman, using an untested nitrogen gas method, all while shrouding the process in secrecy. With just weeks before the scheduled execution on March 18, Hoffman’s legal team has been denied access to the full execution protocol, preventing them from assessing whether this method complies with the Constitution’s prohibition against cruel and unusual punishment.
Advocates are calling this a reckless rush to kill—without transparency, public scrutiny, or due process—arguing that it should concern every Louisiana citizen as well as human rights advocates.
As Hoffman’s attorney Cecelia Kappel warns, “Louisiana’s nitrogen gas protocol is completely untested, and no court has had a chance to review it. We haven’t even been able to see the full protocol ourselves, with Jessie’s execution set for just three weeks from now.”
Proponents of nitrogen gas claim it is a “humane” alternative to lethal injection, but opponents say Alabama’s recent executions tell a different story—one of prolonged suffering, panic, and gruesome death.
Since 2023, Alabama has used nitrogen gas to execute four individuals, each time, advocates say, resulting in horrifying scenes of gasping, shaking, and struggling against restraints.
Eyewitness accounts describe inmates “heaving and retching” inside their masks, appearing to suffocate in agony rather than quietly drifting into unconsciousness.
Hoffman’s legal team argues that this method poses an even greater risk for him personally.
Suffering from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), he is highly likely to experience a severe panic attack during execution.
Additionally, as a devout Buddhist, Hoffman’s faith centers around meditative breathing practices—something that nitrogen gas execution will forcibly strip from him in his final moments.
“The nitrogen gas execution method will place a substantial and unnecessary burden on his religious freedom by preventing him from practicing his faith in the execution chamber as he is being put to death,” states the motion for a preliminary injunction.
Yet, despite these known risks, Louisiana is moving forward “at warp speed,” as Hoffman’s complaint puts it, to use him as a test case for this disturbing execution method.
What makes Louisiana’s actions particularly alarming to advocates for Hoffman is the extreme secrecy surrounding its execution protocol.
Despite numerous requests, the state has refused to provide Hoffman’s legal team with a full copy of the nitrogen gas procedure. The state’s justification? That the execution protocol is “not a public record.”
This lack of transparency is deeply troubling to his attorneys.
If the government is going to wield the ultimate power of life and death, it must be held accountable to the public. “The State wants to roll out this new gas protocol but keep it hidden from the public and even from the man they seek to kill,” said Samantha Kennedy, Executive Director of the Promise of Justice Initiative. “Every Louisiana citizen should be concerned about such an extreme exercise of government power, especially when it involves taking a human life.”
Louisiana’s refusal to disclose details of the protocol not only violates Hoffman’s due process rights but also prevents independent experts from scrutinizing whether this method will result in unconstitutional suffering.
The state’s actions defy basic principles of fairness, transparency, and legal oversight, she claims.
Beyond the constitutional concerns surrounding the execution method, there is another pressing question: Should Louisiana be executing Jessie Hoffman at all? That’s a key question Hoffman’s legal team raises.
Hoffman was just 18 years old—an impulsive and traumatized teenager—when he committed the crime that sent him to death row.
Nearly three decades later, they say he has transformed into a thoughtful and compassionate man, respected by both prison staff and fellow incarcerated individuals. He has long taken responsibility for his actions and devoted himself to faith, service, and repentance.
His attorneys have filed a supplemental clemency application urging Governor Jeff Landry and the Board of Pardons and Parole to consider his remarkable rehabilitation. Louisiana has not carried out an involuntary execution in more than 20 years, and there is no reason to rush to kill a man who has spent decades demonstrating his capacity for change.
Louisiana’s sudden push to resume executions after a 15-year hiatus is no coincidence, Hoffman’s team argues.
In July 2024, the state legislature expanded its execution methods to include electrocution and nitrogen hypoxia, alongside lethal injection. At the same time, it adopted sweeping new secrecy provisions designed to shield the execution process from public scrutiny.
Governor Landry’s administration appears eager to make Louisiana a leader in capital punishment, even at the expense of due process and human dignity. But as Alabama’s failures have shown, rushing forward with a flawed and untested execution method is a recipe for disaster.
As Kappel put it, “There is no good reason for the state to barrel ahead with this untested and dangerous method before the court has a full and fair opportunity to assess its constitutionality.”
The courts, they argue, must act swiftly to halt Hoffman’s execution until Louisiana can prove its method does not violate the Constitution’s ban on cruel and unusual punishment. And Governor Landry must reconsider whether executing a man who has spent nearly 30 years demonstrating remorse and rehabilitation serves justice—or simply satisfies a political agenda.
In a system meant to uphold fairness, transparency, and human dignity, Louisiana’s actions fall dangerously short they say, calling for the state to stop this reckless march toward execution and ensure that the state’s justice system does not become an instrument of secrecy and cruelty.
