Man Executed By Firing Squad For First Time In US In Last 15 Years

A man was executed by firing squad on Friday, for the first time in 15 years after he chose to die by that method, which he saw as preferable to the electric chair or lethal injection. Sigmon’s lawyers stated that he opted for the firing squad because he feared the electric chair would “cook him alive” and worried that a lethal injection of pentobarbital would cause fluid and blood to rush into his lungs, drowning him, as per the report. While the details of South Carolina’s lethal injection method are kept secret, Sigmon had unsuccessfully petitioned the state Supreme Court on Thursday to halt his execution for that reason. Since the death penalty resumed in the US in 1976, South Carolina has executed 46 prisoners—seven by electric chair and 39 by lethal injection.