An Alabama prisoner has become the first in the world to be executed with nitrogen gas.
Convicted murderer Kenneth Smith, 58, has been executed after the US Supreme Court rejected a legal request to halt his sentence.
His official time of death was 8.25pm on Thursday (2.25am UK time).
According to eyewitnesses, the execution took about 22 minutes, and Smith appeared to remain conscious for several minutes.
For at least two minutes, he appeared to be shaking and writhing, sometimes pulling at the restraints. This was followed by several minutes of heavy breathing, until the breathing was no longer perceptible.
State authorities expected loss of consciousness within seconds and death within minutes.
“Tonight,” Smith said in the closing statement Alabama It makes humanity take a step back… I will leave with love, peace and light.”
He signed “I love you” towards his wife and other family members who were witnesses. “Thank you for supporting me. Love you all,” Smith said.
Humane death or lethal experience? How does nitrogen implementation work?
The use of nitrogen gas is highly controversial, with critics saying it is cruel and experimental. It has never been used anywhere before.
It involves fitting the mask tightly to the face, covering the mouth and nose.
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Sky's Thomas More explains how nitrogen hypoxia works
The mask is then fed with nitrogen gas. The person continues to breathe normally, but with no oxygen, the body gradually stops functioning until death occurs – effectively suffocating.
Pastor Jeff Hood, who witnessed the execution, said the reality did not match Alabama's expectations of a quick death.
“We did not see someone lose consciousness within 30 seconds,” he said. “What we saw were minutes of someone struggling to save their life.”
“It was rocking back and forth, and we saw spit, and we saw all kinds of things developing from the mask. The mask was tied to the sling, which caused his head to be ripped back and forth over and over again.”
Elizabeth Sennett was stabbed and beaten to death. Photo: Family distributions
Smith was convicted of the 1988 murder-for-hire of Elizabeth Sennett.
Prosecutors said he was one of two men who were each paid $1,000 to kill Mrs. Sennett on behalf of her pastor husband, who was deeply in debt and wanted to collect on the insurance.
She was found with eight stab wounds to her chest and one to each side of her neck.
The other killer, John Forrest Parker, was executed in 2010.
“On March 18, 1988, Kenneth Eugene Smith brutally took the life of 45-year-old Elizabeth Sinnett,” Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey said in a statement.
“After more than 30 years and subsequent attempts to game the system, Mr. Smith has answered for his heinous crimes.
Activists showed up outside an Alabama prison. Photo: Reuters
Law enforcement policed the gate during Smith's execution. Photo: AP
“The execution was carried out lawfully by nitrogen hypoxia, a method previously requested by Mr. Smith as an alternative to lethal injection.
“Finally, Mr. Smith got what he asked for, and this case can finally be put to rest.
“I pray that Elizabeth Sennett's family can find closure after all these years of facing this terrible loss.”
“Mom got justice”
“Alabama has achieved something historic,” said State Attorney Steve Marshall.
“Like most states, Alabama has ruled that some crimes are so horrific as to warrant ultimate punishment.
“But anti-death penalty activists have worked to overturn this moral judgment through pressure campaigns against anyone who helps states in the process.
“They don't care that the new method in Alabama is humane and effective, because they know it's easy to implement, too.”
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Mike Sennett, the son of Smith's victim, described the day as a “bittersweet day.”
Rev. Hood said Smith had a final meal of T-bone steak, hash browns, toast and eggs in gravy.
Mike Sennett, the son of Smith's victim, spoke to the media after the execution.
“Nothing that happened here today will bring my mom back. It's kind of a bittersweet day,” he said.
“We're not going to jump around and yell and shout and all that… I'll end by saying that Elizabeth Dorlin Sennett got justice tonight.”
PIC: A snapshot of law enforcement in Alabama in the 1980s
Smith's execution comes after he survived a botched lethal injection in 2022 when officials tried unsuccessfully for hours to place an intravenous line in his body.
The incident helped reconsider death penalty procedures in the state.
The Supreme Court justices declined to uphold Smith's legal challenge, which claimed that a second execution attempt — after his first failure had caused severe trauma — would violate the protections of the Eighth Amendment to the United States Constitution against cruel and unusual punishment.
But the decision was not unanimous, as three judges voted to halt the implementation of the ruling.
“After failing to kill Smith on its first attempt, Alabama selected him as a ‘guinea pig’ to test a method of execution never tried before,” Justice Sonia Sotomayor wrote, saying she would have approved the injunction.
“The world is watching.”
Just minutes before the death sentence was carried out, the Supreme Court refused to intervene for the second time.
