The Supreme Court of Alabama approved the execution of a prisoner, Kenneth Eugene Smith, using nitrogen gas on Wednesday. The decision was made in a 6-2 ruling by an all-Republican court, allowing the state's attorney general to proceed with the execution warrant.
This development comes after the Alabama Department of Corrections had to call off Smith's execution last year due to complications with the lethal injection process.
With this recent decision, Alabama edges closer to being the first state to implement the use of nitrogen gas for executions, although it is expected that there will be further legal challenges on the matter.
While Alabama joins Oklahoma and Mississippi in authorizing the use of nitrogen hypoxia for executions, no state has yet executed anyone using this method.
Kenneth Eugene Smith was involved in the 1988 murder-for-hire killing of Elizabeth Sennett in Colbert County, Alabama. Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall expressed gratitude for the court's decision, emphasizing the long-awaited justice for Elizabeth Sennett's family.
However, Smith's legal team opposed the execution, alleging that the state was attempting to expedite the process to render Smith's lawsuit challenging lethal injection procedures moot.
In a statement to Fox News Digital, Smith's attorneys conveyed disappointment with the court's ruling and reaffirmed their commitment to pursuing justice through the judicial process.
They highlighted the novelty and lack of transparency surrounding the proposed nitrogen hypoxia method, emphasizing that using an untested and undisclosed protocol for execution is unjust.
Under the proposed nitrogen gas execution method, the inmate would be deprived of oxygen necessary for bodily functions, resulting in death.
While proponents argue that the process would be painless, critics have likened it to human experimentation. Chief Justice Tom Parker and Justice Greg Cook dissented in the recent decision by the Supreme Court.
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