11mo ago

Kenneth Smith ‘struggled for life’ for 22 minutes in Alabama nitrogen gas execution: Updates

www.independent.co.uk Kenneth Smith ‘struggled for life’ for 22 minutes in nitrogen gas execution: Updates

Witness Reverend Jeff Hood told reporters he saw a man ‘struggling for their life’ for 22 minutes as Smith became the first US death row inmate executed by nitrogen asphyxia

“Kenny just began to gasp for air repeatedly and the execution took about 25 minutes total.”

Pretty compassionate way to kill a person.

Once again, the Law in the south is brutal.

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I don't know anything about this other than the guy most have been pretty terrible to be on death row but even a brutal killer should have some rights nobody deserves to die like that
- There's also this bit..
  When asked at the news conference about Smith shaking at the beginning of the execution, Hamm said Smith appeared to be holding his breath “for as long as he could” and may have also “struggled against his restraints.”
  
  That's false spin. Nitrogen air is just regular air minus oxygen, 78% of the air you breathe is nitrogen. He was suffocated to death simply put, he died of hypoxia. It would be like someone getting shot, but then taking 5-8 minutes to slowly die minus the immediate burning pain of a gun shot or sudden drop in consciousness from immediate/fast bleed out.
- He only killed one person too. Seems he killed the wrong person, maybe someone with power/connections. It makes no sense how he gets the death penalty but other murders don't.
  
  I don't believe in the death penalty first off its cheaper just to give someone life Imprisonment and second its morally wrong
  
  ... and third sometimes they get it wrong and execute an innocent person. You can release an innocent person from prison when you screw up, but there no undo for an execution.
  Fourth, the process of carrying out an execution can get botched. While there are plenty of people that have the necessary skills needed to carry out an execution, nearly all of those people won't do it because of that hippocratic oath thing.
  Fifth, it's just a bad look. It feels like it's more about revenge and than justice, and it's important to not get these things confused.
  
  This 100% agree
  
  How is it cheaper though? I don't support death penalty, but I fail to see how it's cheaper to keep them alive?
  
  Someone who's life is on the line will tend use every possible legal resource possible to avoid getting killed. Survival instinct.
  On the other side, people making the decision to kill a guy tend to want to make sure they got it right.
  So lots of appeals, lots of time in the court. Lawyers and judges get paid a lot more than prison guards, and the cost of prison guard is spread over many prisoners, while the cost of the judge and lawyers for an appeal is all just for that one person on death row. Courtrooms tend to be nicer than prison cells so the upkeep cost of infrastructure is also higher. Doesn't take all that much time in a courtroom to come out to a higher cost than keeping a guy in a prison for the rest of his life.
  
  https://deathpenaltyinfo.org/policy-issues/costs
- even a brutal killer should have some rights
  Dude, sincerely, fuck off.
  
  What you do to the worst is a good indicator of how we treat everyone else
- Pray tell, what is your favourite method of execution?
  
  As a general rule I tend to avoid killing people whenever possible
  
  Obviously. It's far too much work. That's what I pay my executioners for.
  
  Guillotine
  
  Snu Snu
  
  Firing squad, guillotine. Walk the plank.
- A brutal killer should have no rights and should be killed brutally.
  
  You sound like a republican
  
  I don't even live in America
  
  Well you sound like the equivalent of a republican in your country probably a British conservative
  
  Lmao guess again
  
  He wasn't a brutal killer, he was hired to kill someone and did it out of greed. That's actually not brutality. Brutality would be someone raping someone and then killing them for glee. The state in this case is doing this out of brutality, they are doing it because it brings enjoyment and their method of execution is quite brutal.
  
  Could you do it? Would you make someone else do it for you?
- His victim died far more painfully if that helps.
  
  Justice isn't revenge.
  
  Never said it was.
  
  Justice is giving what's owed. And that's a great thing to argue about: What did he owe? To the family, the victim, and society. The question would be easy if taking his life restored the life of the woman he murdered. But that's not possible. However I have seen arguments that would require his death so organs could be harvested to save the life of others who would otherwise die. I'm not comfortable with that but do think that debate needs to happen.
  
  Are you fucking mad? You want to give the state an incentive to murder prisoners? What the fuck is wrong with you?
  ALL COPS ARE BAD
  
  I think we need to have the debate. If you murder someone, do you owe your life if it can save the life of another?
  
  As a transplant recipient who is now listed for a second transplant.
  Nobody wants the state to murder people to increase the supply of organs.
  Stop couching your vengeance fantasies in altruism.
  
  I read “autism” and thought, “holy shit, what did I miss?”
  My brain is broken haha.
  I hope you get your next transplant soon and everything goes well. Take care.
  
  I think we need to have the debate.
  Humans LONG before you had the debate already. Pick up a history book, please! You are not a unique snowflake with concepts this earth has never before thought about. Everything that rattles around in the paint-can on your neck has been debated for generations.
  
  Find a major US newspaper who had addressed the debate any time in the past generation.
  
  Are you only capable of reading newspapers?
  
  If it is a public debate it'll be in the news. Private debates are like this. They may show up somewhere on the internet but nobody cares and it isn't represented in the public consciousness.
  
  I'll amend: are you only capable of reading newspapers and online forums?
  If you can't be bothered to read a book then you really can't be helped.
  
  I’m sorry, people are justifying the death penalty by fucking harvesting organs?
  These are some serious dumbshits who don’t think two syllables past what they are saying.
  First of all, there’s the obvious ethical dilemma of sentencing someone to death because someone important needs a kidney and they happen to have the same rare blood type. You just know that’s bound to happen eventually, and you know it’ll be covered up. More than likely it’d be some trumped up charge against a black inmate who already had a life sentence and no means for recourse.
  Second, the majority of murderers are criminals. And a lot of criminals have a history of drug abuse, alcoholism, and other risk factors for communicable disease and excessive wear on their organs. 99% of the organs to come out of this mill would be totally useless. No surgeon in the world would touch them with a 15ft forceps.
  God it’s make more sense to auction off their organs as trophies and give the proceeds to reputable charities. I’d pay good money to have a serial rapists balls in a jar on my mantle. Thats a hell of a conversation piece.
  
  Logical argument don’t work around here. These kids need to be outraged and there’s no stopping them.
  
  "Logical"
  For a sociopath maybe.
  Good thing most of us live in a developed nation where we don't try to take an eye for an eye, since that makes the whole world go blind. You can never be 100% certain they aren't innocent.
  
  Fancy quotes doesn’t make a thing true.
  
  It does not. We are not animals.
  
  We are, in fact, animals. You need to dial back your notions of personal divinity.
  
  Yes. We are. My god what happened to public schooling?
  
  So an eye for an eye?
  
  False. He died far more painfully of hypoxia that took over 5 minutes and he was able to dread it coming for years.
  
  Good.

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