A New Frontier of Death: Alabama Prepares for First-Ever Nitrogen Execution Amidst Global Scrutiny

Alabama is on the cusp of making grim history, poised to execute Kenneth Eugene Smith using nitrogen hypoxia, a method never before employed for capital punishment in the United States. The looming execution, scheduled for January 25, 2024, or shortly thereafter, arrives shrouded in controversy and marked by Smith's prior brush with death via a botched lethal injection attempt just over a year ago.

Smith, now 58, was convicted in the 1993 murder-for-hire of Elizabeth Dorlene Sennett, a case that has seen decades of legal twists and turns.

He was one of two men hired by Sennett's preacher husband, Charles Sennett, to kill her for insurance money. Charles Sennett, who orchestrated the crime, later took his own life, and the other man involved, John Forrest Parker, was executed in 2018. Smith’s jury initially recommended a life sentence, but a judge ultimately overrode that recommendation, sentencing him to death—a practice now prohibited in Alabama.

The state’s decision to move forward with nitrogen hypoxia stems directly from the dramatic failure of Smith’s previous execution on November 17, 2022.

During that harrowing attempt, correction officials spent hours trying, and failing, to insert the intravenous lines necessary for the lethal injection. Smith was strapped to a gurney for an agonizing four hours as personnel probed his arms and collarbone, an ordeal his attorneys described as torturous.

The state eventually called off the execution, a rare occurrence that brought intense criticism upon Alabama's corrections department.

Now, Alabama plans to use a gas mask-like device to deliver pure nitrogen to Smith, depriving him of oxygen until death. Proponents argue it’s a humane alternative to lethal injection, which has faced increasing scrutiny due to drug shortages and a high rate of botched executions.

However, critics, including the United Nations and human rights organizations, have vehemently condemned the method as experimental and potentially cruel, raising serious questions about its ethical implications and the potential for a prolonged, agonizing death. They point to the lack of scientific data and the potential for Smith to choke or suffer from convulsions.

Smith’s legal team has waged a fierce battle against the impending execution, arguing that subjecting him to a novel, unproven method after the trauma of a failed execution constitutes cruel and unusual punishment, violating his Eighth Amendment rights.

They also contended that the device used to administer the nitrogen might not prevent the leakage of the gas, posing a risk to the execution team and observers. Despite these challenges, both federal courts and the U.S. Supreme Court have largely sided with the state, clearing the path for the procedure.

The case has attracted international attention, shining a harsh spotlight on Alabama's capital punishment practices.

As the execution date draws near, the world watches, not just for the fate of Kenneth Eugene Smith, but for the precedent this unprecedented method of state-sponsored death might set. It’s a chilling moment in the history of capital punishment, as Alabama pioneers a new and deeply contested method of ending a life.