Louisiana lawmakers consider legalizing execution by nitrogen gas

The bill, proposed by state Rep. Nicholas Muscarello, would add nitrogen gas hypoxia to the legal methods of execution for the state. The method was used for the first time in the United States last month when the Alabama Department of Corrections executed Kenneth Eugene Smith, a convicted murderer. The bill was pre-filed last week and referred to the Statehouse’s Committee on Administration of Criminal Justice. Lawmakers will begin discussing the bill during its session that begins Monday.

A digest summary of the bill shows that the measure would also:

• Make lethal injection the automatic default method of execution for prisoners.

• Reinstate electrocution as a legal means of execution. The method was previously retired in 1991.

• Provide “absolute confidentiality” for any “person, business, organization, or other entity” involved with an execution, specifically protecting the identities of a prisoner’s parents, spouse, and adult children. Anyone guilty of breaking confidentiality clauses would be subject to a maximum fine of $50,000 and up to two years in prison.

Isn’t nitrogen execution controversial? Some advocates maintain that the method is efficient and painless, while some critics compare the method to a form of torture. Smith’s legal team appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court to stop the execution, citing the cruel and unusual punishment in the Eighth Amendment of the Constitution. However, a majority of the court refrained from stopping the execution.