Witnesses describe the first nitrogen gas execution in US history: the prisoner shook and gasped for air.

Witnesses describe the first nitrogen gas execution in US history: the prisoner shook and gasped for air.

Smith, 58, was pronounced deceased on Thursday at 8:25 p.m. When the nitrogen gas in the execution chamber of the Alabama prison started to flow through his full-face mask, he seemed to quake and shudder for almost four minutes.

He appeared to lose consciousness after another two to three minutes, during which time he was gasping for oxygen so badly that the cart shook multiple times. The death of 45-year-old Elizabeth Sennett in a murder-for-hire plot was carried out in the death chamber of the William C. Holman Correctional Facility in Atmore, more than thirty years after the man’s conviction.

The U.S. Supreme Court refused to halt the execution in a decision delivered Thursday evening, with the court’s three liberal justices dissenting. Justice Sonia Sotomayor noted Alabama’s failure to execute Smith in 2022, citing concerns about the state’s “hazy” protocol for its new procedure and the risk of protecting inmates from cruel and unusual punishment. “This case shows how that protection can be all too fragile,” she wrote.

He appeared to lose consciousness after another two to three minutes, during which time he was gasping for oxygen so badly that the cart shook multiple times. The death of 45-year-old Elizabeth Sennett in a murder-for-hire plot was carried out in the death chamber of the William C. Holman Correctional Facility in Atmore, more than thirty years after the man’s conviction.

Since the introduction of lethal injection, which is currently the most frequently used method, in 1982, Thursday’s execution marks the first time a new method has been utilized in the United States. This is how it transpired:

7:53 p.m.

Smith had four witnesses in the media witness room, and the drapes were open. He was wearing a full-face mask that was attached to a plastic tube that protruded from a rectangular hole in the death chamber’s concrete block wall.

Smith’s limbs and body were restrained by straps while he was confined to the gurney cruciform. Gazing into the witness room, he seemed to identify the witnesses that were present for him.

7:55 p.m.

7:55 p.m.

He was permitted to say one last thing. The mask made it hard to hear what he was saying.

“Tonight, Alabama caused humanity to take a step backward,” he stated. Smith expressed gratitude to everyone who helped him during this procedure and his earlier attempt at execution.

As he concluded, he remarked, “I love all of you.” “I appreciate your support. I cherish each and every one of you.”

7:56 p.m.

Smith’s spiritual advisor, the Rev. Jeff Hood, came up to him clutching a Bible, and they seemed to pray.

7:57 p.m.

Inside the execution chamber, a prison guard came up to Smith and examined the mask’s seal. It seemed like the nitrogen started to pour.

7:57 p.m. to 8 p.m.

Smith lay on the gurney, convulsing and writhing. When the gas started to flow, he seemed to be completely conscious.

He inhaled deeply, his eyes rolling back in his head as his body trembled uncontrollably. Hood, who was around fifteen feet away, repeatedly made the sign of the cross.

Under the neatly tucked-in white sheet that covered him from his neck down, Smith tightened his fists and his knees shook. His breathing appeared to be laboring.

Throughout this time, the gurney rocked multiple times. Hood took off his glasses and wiped his tears away.

8:02 p.m.

Smith seemed to go unconscious. After around twenty seconds, his chest did not move, and he gave numerous deep gasps for breath.

The inside of the facemask looked to be covered in tears or saliva. Smith’s female witness started crying.

8:06 p.m.

Smith seemed to catch his breath.

8:07 p.m.

Smith seemed to draw his final breath.

8:15 p.m.

The witness room’s drapes were drawn.

Following the execution, Ohio Department of Corrections Commissioner John Q. Hamm stated at a press conference that Smith’s responses were “nothing out of the ordinary.”

“It appeared Smith held his breath for as long as he could, and struggled against his restraints,” said Hamm. “This was expected.”

Smith’s mask received nitrogen flow for roughly fifteen minutes, according to Hamm.

At 6:58 p.m., five media witnesses were brought from the media center, which is roughly 4 kilometers away, to the prison. They were led inside at approximately 7:47 p.m. after spending some time outside in a trailer.

According to Hamm, the delay resulted from challenges connecting Smith’s ECG monitors. However, Smith did not encounter any issues from prison system employees throughout the process of attaching the monitors to him.

Standing in the execution room around fifteen feet away from Smith were Hood and two employees of the prison system. They wore nothing but masks.

Unlike other executions where the method was a lethal injection, Smith looked to have stopped breathing, but a staff member did not go over to see if he was still aware.

Smith had previously been tried for execution by Alabama

Smith was strapped to a gurney in 2022 and scheduled for a lethal injection, but the execution was stopped before the death warrant expired because prison personnel were unable to get into Smith’s veins.

The warrant at the time was valid for 24 hours. According to Smith’s attorneys, he endured agony while employees worked to install the lines.

Smith was the subject of a 30-hour death warrant on Thursday, which ran from midnight until six a.m. on Friday. That 30-hour limit was established following the state’s initial, fruitless attempt to assassinate Smith.

About three minutes later, Alabama Governor Kay Ivey verified the exact moment of death in a statement.

“After more than 30 years and attempt after attempt to game the system, Mr. Smith has answered for his horrendous crimes,” Ivey stated. “The execution was lawfully carried out by nitrogen hypoxia, the method previously requested by Mr. Smith as an alternative to lethal injection.”

Smith found guilty of a murder-for-hire scheme

On November 14, 1989, Smith was found guilty of capital murder in the Colbert County murder-for-hire case involving Elizabeth Sennett. She was the wife of Rev. Charles Sennett, who attempted to collect on her life insurance policy by hiring Smith and his co-defendant to kill her.

In her house, Elizabeth Sennett was fatally stabbed. A few days after her death, Charles Sennett, who was in debt at the time, committed suicide since it was clear that authorities suspected him of being involved.

After Smith’s first conviction was reversed, he was found guilty of capital murder once more in 1996. 2010 saw the execution of John Forrest Parker, his co-defendant in the case.

Associated Press contributed