A federal judge in Alabama has blocked the state from executing a death row inmate using nitrogen hypoxia. This decision reverses a prior ruling that deemed this execution method constitutional. The ruling was issued on Tuesday, permanently stopping the planned execution of Jeffrey Lee, a 49-year-old inmate, who was set to die through this controversial method.
Lee, convicted for a 1998 double murder, had been on Alabama’s death row for over two decades. He was scheduled to be executed on Thursday by nitrogen hypoxia, which involves forcing the inmate to breathe pure nitrogen until they suffocate from a lack of oxygen. Court documents state that Lee was found guilty of murdering Jimmy Ellis, a store owner, and Elaine Thompson, an employee, during an attempted robbery.
Constitutional Concerns
U.S. District Judge Emily Marks stated that Alabama’s protocol for using nitrogen gas violates the Eighth Amendment. This amendment protects against cruel and unusual punishment. Her decision followed a Monday ruling by an appeals court reversing her earlier conclusion that found the method constitutional.
Marks emphasized that Lee demonstrated through evidence that this execution method poses significant risks. After reviewing testimony from both experts and lay witnesses in an April trial, the court concluded that the process likely leads inmates to suffer severe air hunger, emotional distress, anxiety, and severe discomfort before death.
The court ruled that the method’s risk is not speculative. Experiencing these symptoms for one to three minutes before dying was deemed unconstitutionally painful. Marks remarked that even a timeframe of 60 to 180 seconds under these conditions is intolerable.
Proposed Alternatives
To challenge an execution method under the Eighth Amendment, Supreme Court guidelines require proof of substantial risk of pain and a reasonable alternative execution method. Lee proposed execution by firing squad as an alternative.
Judge Marks stated that this alternative is feasible and significantly reduces the risk of serious harm. Despite Alabama not authorizing execution by firing squad, Marks noted the state failed to provide any legitimate reason against adopting this method.
Future Legal Challenges
The office of Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall plans to appeal Marks’ decision. Despite criticism of its nitrogen gas protocol, the state continues denying allegations that the method causes cruel or unusual suffering.
Had the execution proceeded, Lee would have been the ninth person in the U.S. executed with nitrogen hypoxia and the eighth in Alabama. Louisiana has carried out one such execution.
The constitutionality of Alabama’s nitrogen gas execution method may soon reach the U.S. Supreme Court. To date, the Supreme Court has not found any method of capital punishment unconstitutional.