All articles tagged with #cruel and unusual punishment
The Supreme Court's three liberal justices criticized nitrogen hypoxia executions, describing them as causing psychological terror and excruciating suffocation, and argued they likely violate the Eighth Amendment. Justice Sotomayor highlighted the prolonged suffocation experience, emphasizing the method's cruelty, as the Court declined to halt the execution of Anthony Boyd, who was executed using this method in Alabama.
South Carolina seeks to restart executions using the electric chair and firing squad, arguing that painless deaths are not mandated by law. Lawyers for death row inmates argue that these methods are cruel and unusual punishments, while the state claims they are consistent with existing protocols. The state's shield law hides details about the new lethal injection drug and protocol, prompting concerns about transparency. If executions restart, South Carolina's death chamber could see activity after nearly 13 years of inactivity.