Man who survived three attempted executions set to be killed with world first 'inhumane' method
A death row inmate who has already lived through one visit to the death chamber and two execution appeals is set to die this week under a controversial new method.
Kenneth Eugene Smith was originally sentenced to death in 1989, when he was convicted of capital murder for the death of Elizabeth Sennett.
Smith was one of two men convicted for the crime after he was hired by Elizabeth's husband, pastor Charles Sennett, to kill her so Charles could claim a large insurance policy pay out.
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After decades on death row and two successful appeals against his execution, Smith was taken to the death chamber in November 2022 to die by lethal injection.
However, after Smith was strapped to a gurney, executioners failed to find a vein and were forced to abandon the attempt when the state's death warrant expired at midnight.
With another attempt to execute Smith fast approaching, Alabama has decided to put to use a new execution method.
The state is only the third, alongside Oklahoma and Mississippi, to authorize the use of nitrogen hypoxia to execute prisoners, but no state has ever actually used the method before.
Smith's execution is set to go ahead on Thursday (25 January), and if it does it will mark the first new method of execution since lethal injection was introduced in 1982.
The use of nitrogen gas would deprive the inmate of oxygen, causing them to pass away.
When it comes to Smith's execution, Alabama plans to put a mask over Smith's face before activating the 'nitrogen hypoxia system' from another room.
The gas will be administered for at least 15 minutes, or for 'five minutes following a flatline indication on the EKG, whichever is longer'.
The Alabama attorney general’s office has told a federal judge the method will 'cause unconsciousness within seconds, and cause death within minutes'.
However, critics of the method have pointed to the fact it has never been done before and likened Smith's death to human experimentation.
The UN's High Commissioner for Human Rights called for a halt in the execution, and claimed the method could amount to torture.
In a written interview with the BBC, Smith himself called for Alabama to 'stop [the execution].
He added he was 'nauseous all the time' as his execution date nears.
"Panic attacks hit regularly... This is just a small part of what I've been dealing with daily. Torture, basically," he wrote.
Smith's spiritual advisor, Rev Dr Jeff Hood, expressed belief that Smith is 'not afraid to die', but said he's 'afraid that he will be even further tortured in the process'.
In response to the UN's concerns about the execution, the Attorney General's office said they were 'as unfounded as Smith's'.
It said in a statement: "The trial court examined Smith's challenge, heard from multiple medical experts, and determined that Smith's concerns about nitrogen hypoxia were 'speculative' and 'theoretical'.
"We intend to proceed with his execution on January 25th."
Emily Brown