A South Carolina man has selected the firing squad as his preferred method of death in what will become the country's first such execution in 15 years.
Brad Sigmon, 67, could have selected lethal injection or the electric chair, but instead opted for firing squad. Three men will carry out the execution Friday, the Daily News reported. The last time a firing squad was used was in Utah in 2010 when Ronnie Lee Gardner was executed for killing a lawyer.
Sigmon was sentenced to die in 2002 after beating his ex-girlfriends parents to death with a baseball bat. He also kidnapped the woman and planned to kill her, too, but she was able to escape, the newspaper reported.
South Carolina does not reveal the identities of the shooters. However, the state did develop protocols for firing squad executions, including qualifications for executioners. The shooters are volunteers, members of the corrections department, and must meet certain firearms qualifications, the protocols state.
The shooters will be armed with rifles and live ammunition and will stand 15 feet away from Sigmon. The room is structured in such a way that witnesses will have a side view of Sigmon and the shooters will be hidden behind a wall. Also, the state installed bullet-resistant glass to protect witnesses to the execution.
"The inmate will be given the opportunity to make a last statement. The inmate will be strapped into the chair, and a hood will be placed over his head. A small aim point will be placed over his heart by a member of the execution team," the protocol states.
"After the warden reads the execution order, the team will fire. After the shots, a doctor will examine the inmate. After the inmate is declared dead, the curtain will be drawn and witnesses escorted out,"the document states.
Sigmon selected firing squad because he had concerns about the effectiveness of lethal injection, his attorneys told the Greenville News. Autopsies of the last two men executed in South Carolina by lethal injection showed their lungs had swollen due to blood and fluid.
Originally published on Latin Times
