this post was submitted on 25 Sep 2024
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Alabama is set to perform the second-ever nitrogen gas execution in the United States on Thursday.

Alan Eugene Miller, 59, was sentenced to death for the 1999 murders of his then-coworkers Lee Holdbrooks and Christoper Scott Yancy, and his former supervisor Terry Lee Jarvis.

Miller was to be executed in September 2022 via lethal injection, but it was called off after officials had trouble inserting an intravenous line to administer the fatal drugs and were concerned they would not be able to do so before the death warrant expired.

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[–] Asafum@feddit.nl 26 points 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago) (3 children)

"Miller was to be executed in September 2022 via lethal injection, but it was called off after officials had trouble inserting an intravenous line to administer the fatal drugs and were concerned they would not be able to do so before the death warrant expired."

Shouldn't this be considered "cruel and unusual punishment?"

"We're killing you now. This is the end for you. Here comes the needle. Actually wait, nevermind, go back to your cell and wait another few years."

I guess they would argue that it wasn't intentional?

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[–] TheTechnician27@lemmy.world 70 points 2 days ago* (last edited 1 day ago) (26 children)

Per the John Oliver episode on the death penalty, there's substantial evidence that murder by nitrogen suffocation is extremely painful.

Edit: the episode and timestamp in question. Nitrogen hypoxia (edit: at least as it's being performed by these ass-backward hicks) is not painless as some commenters are suggesting. Section lasts from about 23:00 to 24:45. An excerpt from the Wikipedia article properly sourced to the Associated Press, BBC News, and the Montgomery Advertiser (local Alabama newspaper):

Though the State Attorney General said afterward that Smith's execution showed that nitrogen hypoxia was an "effective and humane method of execution", several people watching the execution reported that Smith "thrashed violently on the gurney" for several minutes, with his death reportedly occurring 10 minutes after the nitrogen was administered to the chamber. The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights condemned the use.

And to be clear, the only reason these sick fucks are using nitrogen is because it's becoming increasingly difficult to source ~~potassium chloride~~ the barbituate and paralytic for lethal injections because the optics for companies supplying them is abysmal.

[–] earmuff@lemmy.dbzer0.com 6 points 1 day ago

This is simply not true. Nitrogen is not the issue, CO2 is. If you breathe too much CO2, your body panicks.

So do it properly and the worst you get is a slight headache. But since you are „high“, you don’t care anymore.

[–] mp3@lemmy.ca 31 points 2 days ago* (last edited 2 days ago)

I guess it depends on the implementation of proper removal of oxygen and maintaining low level of CO² as its the method used for the sarco pod.

[–] catloaf@lemm.ee 30 points 2 days ago (1 children)

Is there? I've always heard that inert gas asphyxiation is basically unnoticeable, which is why it's so deadly in accidents, especially when people try to rescue someone and fall victim themselves.

The human body doesn't have a "low oxygen" sense, only a "high CO2" sense, so nitrogen and other gases shouldn't trigger the feeling of suffocation.

[–] Zron@lemmy.world 40 points 2 days ago (1 children)

You are correct

But these chuckle fucks want to save money.

They don’t flood a whole room with nitrogen, they just use an oxygen mask that’s flowing a lot if nitrogen.

The person is still breathing in a lot of what they exhale, which makes it very painful for them

[–] catloaf@lemm.ee 15 points 2 days ago (2 children)

I found two case studies of people using face masks to commit suicide, and more using plastic bags, and it seemed to work for them. I think it can be done painlessly, but clearly Alabama is being Alabama.

For the record, I'm against the death penalty entirely, but if we're going to do it it should be done properly. This is cruelty.

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[–] astrsk@fedia.io 27 points 2 days ago

CO2 buildup is the part that cause pain, panic, and visceral reaction. There’s a reason they purge CO2 from the assisted suicide pods that also completely surround the body in an air-tight enclosure.

The violent reaction can be explained by a buildup of CO2 which is partially how the body signals the brain to breathe more and heavier. This is not usually observed with inert gas deaths which is why industrial inert gas accidents often have people passing out and dying without even noticing.

[–] killea@lemmy.world 59 points 2 days ago (1 children)

If done properly it should be completely painless and almost unnoticeable. I have a feeling they're fucking these up on purpose.

[–] TexasDrunk@lemmy.world 28 points 2 days ago* (last edited 1 day ago) (2 children)

Never attribute to malice what can be explained by plain old dumbfuckery. These podunk inbreds may do it for kicks (some of them are definitely malicious enough), but I think it's pretty likely that they got someone named Cooter to do the final installation.

This information is brought to you by a drunk that looks like he could be named Cooter. Or possibly Cletus.

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[–] Rakonat@lemmy.world 21 points 2 days ago (2 children)

Nitrogen Hypoxia will render you unconscious in under a minute when its almost pure n2 and exhaust is accounted for to remove co2. The last execution was done on such a sloppily manner you seriously have to question if the procedure was done in such a way that to ensure maximum suffering. The mask used didn't allow co2 to be vented away, their method of execution was only one step up from wrapping a bag around his head.

A proper way to do it, probably not done because cost and some stupid unnecessary procedure, would be to construct a booth around a chair with exhaust fans near the base and a supply of pure n2 coming from the top. If the o2 and co2 can be removed quickly enough the body can't tell its not getting enough to breath and loss of consciousness can happen quickly with death following in minutes. Smarter Every Day has a video on Hypoxia where Dusten, the content creator, is an altitude simulator where they are lowering the air pressure to simulate high altitude and by extension just a few short steps from a death chamber. The host goes through several stages of hypoxia and had to be told point blank to put his oxygen mask back on several times before he risks passing out. At no point does he show signs of pain or distress and if anything acting almost like hes high.

Building a chamber like this for executions would have been far more humane but they didn't want to put more thought or money into it than strangling a guy so instead you get that botch job Alabama used.

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[–] Cagi@lemmy.ca 4 points 2 days ago

We have those MAID pods in Canada, why not just buy a few of them? Not cruel enough?

[–] tacosanonymous@lemm.ee 137 points 2 days ago (2 children)

Would love it if we just stopped the government sanctioned murders.

[–] fine_sandy_bottom@lemmy.federate.cc 72 points 2 days ago (8 children)

The US death penalty is so bizarre.

"We desperately want to kill these probably-guilty people, we want it to appear humane while simultaneously lacking any humanity, and no one wants to be involved in any way because we acknowledge that it's pretty much murder which is the crime we're punishing these poor bastards for"

Other countries still doing this, which I don't condone, at least own it. "We think these guys are scum and we're going to end them by chopping their heads off. No you may not watch."

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[–] normalexit@lemmy.world 35 points 2 days ago (7 children)

If they must kill people I don't understand why they don't knock people out first. I've been under anesthesia for surgery; If they had killed me while under, things would've just stayed dark, but I never would have known.

[–] funkless_eck@sh.itjust.works 56 points 2 days ago (2 children)

Anesthesiologists won't do it. That's why they had so much trouble executing the guy in the first place: its not a doctor doing it, just a prison guard.

[–] Rai@lemmy.dbzer0.com 13 points 2 days ago

First… uhhhhhh… do harm I guess

[–] ours@lemmy.world 4 points 1 day ago (6 children)

They take their Hippocratic Oat seriously thankfully.

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[–] Fosheze@lemmy.world 49 points 2 days ago (1 children)

Doctors wont do it which makes dosing tricky. More importantly drug companies won't sell them the drugs because they don't want their product to be associated with people being killed.

[–] Corkyskog@sh.itjust.works 7 points 1 day ago (1 children)

How does it make dosing tricky? Just give everybody a mega dose... what's the worst that can happen, they die before you kill them?

[–] oatscoop@midwest.social 12 points 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago) (1 children)

"Tricky" means "ethical issues of someone who took an oath to heal and save lives doing the opposite."

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[–] mipadaitu@lemmy.world 29 points 2 days ago

That's what lethal injection is for. But they can't get legitimate doctors to perform an execution, so they have to just wing it with hacks, which is why they often get fucked up.

At least a firing squad is full of people who know how to shoot.

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[–] LEDZeppelin@lemmy.world 30 points 2 days ago (1 children)
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