
"Controversy Surrounds Nation's First Nitrogen Gas Execution"
Kenneth Eugene Smith, convicted in a 1988 murder-for-hire case, convulsed and gasped for breath during Alabama's first execution using nitrogen gas. Critics called it cruel and experimental, while the attorney general described it as a "textbook" execution. The process began at 7:53 p.m., with Smith's final words and thrashing lasting until about 8:15 p.m. He was pronounced dead at 8:25 p.m.













