US appeals court raises concerns about Alabama’s use of nitrogen gas for executions
The panel said Alabama’s protocol may cause severe air hunger for up to 3 minutes and sent the case back for more review.
- A federal appeals court ruled Monday that Alabama's nitrogen gas execution method needs more study regarding constitutional protections against cruel and unusual punishment, days before a scheduled Thursday execution.
- Death row inmate Jeffery Lee filed a lawsuit last year challenging the method after an earlier federal judge ruled it did not violate the constitutional ban on cruel and unusual punishment.
- Attorneys for Lee argue the method causes excessive suffering, noting Alabama's last nitrogen execution took more than 30 minutes to complete and involves replacing breathable air with pure nitrogen gas.
- The three-judge appeals court panel stopped short of staying the planned execution but asked the judge to consider whether a firing squad alternative remained feasible for the state.
- Nationally, nitrogen gas has been used in eight executions—seven times in Alabama and once in Louisiana—as Lee awaits Thursday's execution for killing two people during a 1998 robbery.
159 Articles
159 Articles
Alabama asks appeals court to let it continue nitrogen gas executions
Alabama is waging a last-minute legal fight to execute a man with nitrogen gas on Thursday night, asking the U.S. Supreme Court to set aside a judge’s findings that the method violates the Constitution’s ban on cruel and unusual punishment.
What to know about execution methods in the U.S. after judge blocks Alabama from using nitrogen gas
Alabama's plans to execute a death row inmate using nitrogen gas appeared to be thwarted Tuesday by a federal judge permanently blocking the state from using that method, declaring it violates the constitutional ban on cruel and unusual punishment.
Federal judge blocks use of Alabama's nitrogen gas execution protocol
A jury convicted Jeffery Lee, 50, of the 1998 murders of Jimmy Ellis and Elaine Thompson during a pawn shop robbery. Lee was scheduled to be executed by nitrogen gas on Thursday, but a federal judge Tuesday ruled that it constituted cruel and unusual punishment. (Alabama Department of Corrections) Key points A federal judge Tuesday ruled Alabama’s nitrogen gas protocol constituted “cruel and unusual punishment” and said a death row…
However, the US Constitution prohibits cruel and unusual punishment, meaning that this method of execution can no longer be used in the state.
Federal judge blocks use of Alabama’s nitrogen gas execution protocol
A jury convicted Jeffery Lee, 50, of the 1998 murders of Jimmy Ellis and Elaine Thompson during a pawn shop robbery. Lee was scheduled to be executed by nitrogen gas on Thursday, but a federal judge Tuesday ruled that it constituted cruel and unusual punishment. (Alabama Department of Corrections)A federal judge Tuesday ruled that Alabama’s nitrogen gas execution protocol constituted “cruel and unusual punishment,” throwing future uses of the co…
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