Historical moment: First execution by the shooting command in the USA!

Historical moment: First execution by the shooting command in the USA!

In a shattering turn of events, 67-year-old Brad Sigmon in the state of South Carolina was executed by a shooting squad on Friday evening. Sigmon, who was convicted of the murder of his ex-girlfriend in 2001, had chosen this method of execution, contrary to the usual practice, to escape the fatal injection. As Kleine Zeitung he chose this method, since he had the fear of suffering from the injection.

The execution took place in a prison in Columbia, the capital of South Carolina, where Sigmon was tied in a chair and shot over her head with a black hood. Three volunteers carried out the execution through slots in the wall, while members of the victims, his lawyer and some media representatives were present. During his last words, Sigmon asked to abolish the death penalty. This is a significant moment because it has been the first execution by a shooting squad in the United States for 15 years, as Welt reported.

background to the execution method

The possibility of carrying out executions through shooting commands was reintroduced in South Carolina in 2021 after the state had problems procuring the necessary medication for fatal injections. In addition to South Carolina, Idaho, Mississippi, Oklahoma and Utah are currently responsible for this type of enforcement, although there was a similar execution in Utah in 2010. Sigmon is the first person who has been executed in South Carolina since the re -registration of this method. A total of 13 further executions are planned this year, whereby the debate about the death penalty will continue to be intensively.