ALABAMA – Alabama’s execution of Anthony Boyd, 54, has raised national concern over the use of nitrogen gas as a method of capital punishment, according to a New York Times report by Nicholas Bogel-Burroughs. Boyd, who was convicted in 1993 for his role in the killing of Gregory Huguley, was executed Thursday night at a prison in Atmore, Alabama.
Witnesses said the execution lasted nearly 20 minutes, with Boyd “suffocating, trying to breathe for 19 minutes,” said Jeff Hood, a spiritual adviser to Boyd who was in the execution chamber. Another observer counted more than 225 gasps before he was pronounced dead nearly 20 minutes later, according to the Times.
The Times reported that the U.S. Supreme Court declined to intervene despite opposition from the court’s three liberal justices. Justice Sonia Sotomayor described nitrogen hypoxia as a “cruel form of execution,” writing that those executed this way are “strapped to a gurney with a mask on your face pumping your lungs with nitrogen gas.”
Bogel-Burroughs noted that Alabama became the first state in the U.S. to use nitrogen gas in executions in January 2024. Boyd’s execution was the eighth by nitrogen gas in the state, and officials confirmed it was also the longest to date, according to the Times.
Supporters of this method claim that it’s painless and “less prone to error,” but Bogel-Burroughs wrote that many witnesses have described “difficult-to-watch” scenes as prisoners struggled before being pronounced dead.
The Times also reported that in a statement following the execution, Gov. Kay Ivey said Boyd’s death brought “justice” to the victim’s family. Boyd, however, maintained his innocence in his final words, saying his execution was about “revenge, not closure,” before ending with “Let’s get it.”
According to the Times, Boyd’s execution marked the 40th in the U.S. this year, the highest number since 2012, reflecting a growing use of capital punishment across several states.
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