{"id":2155935,"date":"2024-01-22T14:52:02","date_gmt":"2024-01-22T19:52:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/alabama-to-carry-out-first-nitrogen-gas-execution-lawyers-ask-u-s-supreme-court-to-review-violation\/"},"modified":"2024-01-22T14:55:05","modified_gmt":"2024-01-22T19:55:05","slug":"alabama-to-carry-out-first-nitrogen-gas-execution-lawyers-ask-u-s-supreme-court-to-review-violation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/alabama-to-carry-out-first-nitrogen-gas-execution-lawyers-ask-u-s-supreme-court-to-review-violation\/","title":{"rendered":"Alabama plans to conduct its inaugural nitrogen gas execution, while attorneys request the U.S. Supreme Court to examine the alleged violation"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">42<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Falabama-to-carry-out-first-nitrogen-gas-execution-lawyers-ask-u-s-supreme-court-to-review-violation%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2155935&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p><!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC \"-\/\/W3C\/\/DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional\/\/EN\" \"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/TR\/REC-html40\/loose.dtd\"><br \/>\n<?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><html><body><\/p>\n<div class=\"entry-content\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">  (Photo by Mike Simons\/Getty Images)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>OAN\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.oann.com\/tag\/abril-elfi\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Abril Elfi<\/a><br \/>10:17 AM \u2013 Monday, January\u200b 22, 2024<\/p>\n<p>Alabama is gearing up\u200b for its first-ever nitrogen gas execution. \u2063However, the\u200d inmate&#8217;s legal team is urging the U.S. Supreme Court to \u200dreview whether this execution would violate\u2063 the U.S. Constitution. \u2064They\u200b argue \u2062that since it is the state&#8217;s\u200b second attempt to execute their client, it raises constitutional concerns.<\/p>\n<div id=\"div-gpt-ad-1663871513696-art-3\" style=\"min-width: 320px; min-height: 50px; text-align: center;\">  \t<script>  \t\tgoogletag.cmd.push(function() { googletag.display('div-gpt-ad-1663871513696-art-3'); });  \t<\/script>  <\/div>\n<div class=\"ad-slot__ad-label\">Advertisement<\/div>\n<\/p>\n<p>Lawyers representing Kenneth Eugene Smith, an \u200binmate on Alabama&#8217;s death row who \u200cis set to \u2064become the first person to be executed\u200d by nitrogen hypoxia this week, have filed a \u200brequest with the U.S. Supreme Court (SCOTUS) to consider whether Smith&#8217;s execution would violate the Constitution. They argue that since this\u2064 is the state&#8217;s \u2062second attempt at carrying out the death penalty, and the first \u200cattempt had &#8220;gone\u200b wrong&#8221; due to reasons the state \u200c&#8221;should have known\u2063 about,&#8221; it raises constitutional concerns.<\/p>\n<p>Two separate juries found Smith guilty of killing Elizabeth Dorlene Sennett in 1988 in Colbert County, Alabama, as part of a murder-for-hire\u2063 plot. Sennett, who was a pastor&#8217;s\u200b wife, endured repeated beatings and stabbings. Smith confessed to his involvement in \u200dthe murder and has been on \u2063death\u2063 row since \u20631996.<\/p>\n<p>Smith is scheduled to be executed \u2063on Thursday \u2064using nitrogen hypoxia, \u200cwhich, if carried out, would mark the first use of lethal injection \u200csince its \u200cintroduction in 1982.<\/p>\n<p>The\u200d state claims that the use of nitrogen gas will render the victim unconscious rapidly. However, opponents argue that this untested method of\u2064 execution is akin to\u200b unethical \u2063human experiments.<\/p>\n<p>Smith had previously challenged the state&#8217;s decision to execute him via lethal injection,\u200b but the U.S. Supreme Court\u2063 ruled in favor of the state last year. However, the SCOTUS declined\u200b to reconsider the decision of a lower court that upheld Smith&#8217;s right to die via fatal gas injection instead\u2063 of injection.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote\">\n<p>&#8220;It is undeniable that ADOC caused Mr. Smith actual physical and psychological pain by repeatedly attempting (and \u200cfailing) to establish IV access\u2064 through his arms, hands, and a central line while he was strapped to \u2062a gurney\u2064 for hours,&#8221; stated Smith&#8217;s lawyers in their request\u200d to the Supreme Court. &#8220;ADOC&#8217;s failed \u2062attempt to execute Mr. Smith caused him severe physical pain and psychological torment, including posttraumatic stress disorder.&#8221;<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>They further questioned the Supreme Court, asking if &#8220;a second attempt to execute a condemned person following a single, cruelly willful attempt \u2063to execute that same person violates the prohibition against cruel and unusual punishments under the Eighth and Fourteenth Amendments to the United States \u200cConstitution.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Smith&#8217;s request to the Supreme \u2063Court revolves around the constitutionality \u200cof a state attempting to\u2062 execute a person twice after the first attempt\u2064 failed. This issue has only been previously\u200c considered by the court \u200bin one instance, where\u2063 a prisoner in Louisiana escaped an electric chair execution due to a mechanical malfunction. \u2063The court ruled, with a 5-4 decision, that the second attempt \u2062would not be unconstitutional under the 8th Amendment&#8217;s ban on cruel and unusual punishments.<\/p>\n<p>In their court brief, Smith&#8217;s attorneys referenced \u200ca 1947 ruling from one of the justices&#8217; opinions that supported the majority&#8217;s decision.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;Does [that] not mean that a hypothetical situation, which assumes a series of abortive \u2062attempts at electrocution or even a single, cruelly willful attempt, would not raise different questions?&#8221; wrote Justice Felix Frankfurter in response to the \u200cdecision not\u2062 to block the second execution \u200dattempt in that particular case.<\/p>\n<p>Stay informed! Subscribe here to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/xi-jinping-and-vladimir-putin-meet-in-kremlin\/\" title=\"Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin meet in Kremlin\">receive breaking news blasts directly<\/a> to your inbox for free.\u200b <a href=\"https:\/\/www.oann.com\/alerts\">https:\/\/www.oann.com\/alerts<\/a><\/p>\n<\/p>\n<div id=\"rc-widget-10bad2\" data-rc-widget data-widget-host=\"habitat\" data-endpoint=\"\/\/trends.revcontent.com\" data-widget-id=\"278641\"><\/div>\n<p class=\"dpsp-share-text\" style=\"margin-bottom:10px\"> \t\t \t\tShare this\u200b post!\t<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"entry-content\">\n<p>As antisemitism \u2063continues to rise on college campuses, one group is forming to counter hatred, by supporting \u200dPalestine&#8217;s war \u2062against Israel.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"entry-content\">\n<p>with Rep. Jeff Van Drew<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"entry-content\">\n<p>with\u200b Gabe Eltaeb<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"entry-content\">\n<p>with Sheriff Mark Lamb<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"entry-content\">\n<p>AI startup ElevenLabs \u200bgained unicorn status as surging investor interest for generative AI technology sends startup valuations soaring.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"entry-content\">\n<p>Binance is due to square off against the\u200b SEC next week in another\u200d <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/atlas-airs-boeing-cargo-plane-makes-emergency-landing-after-engine-malfunction\/\" title=\"Atlas Air's Boeing cargo plane makes emergency landing due to engine malfunction\">high-profile hearing involving<\/a> a crypto \u200bexchange that could\u2063 define how cryptocurrencies are regulated.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"entry-content\">\n<p>Executives at the WEF say they are grappling with \u2063how to turn early demos into money-makers.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"entry-content\">\n<p>Apple \u200cended Samsung Electronics&#8217; 12-year reign as the largest seller of \u200bsmartphones in the world.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p> rnrn  <\/p>\n<h2> Why is the inmate&#8217;s legal team questioning the constitutionality of \u200ba second attempt to execute their\u2062 client after the first attempt failed<\/h2>\n<p><span>  Alabama&#8217;s First Nitrogen Gas Execution Faces Constitutional Challenge<\/p>\n<p>Alabama is preparing for its first-ever nitrogen gas execution,\u200c but the inmate&#8217;s legal team is urging the U.S. Supreme Court \u2064to review \u200cwhether this execution would violate \u200bthe U.S. Constitution. The legal team argues that since \u2064it\u200d is the \u200dstate&#8217;s\u2062 second attempt to execute their client, it raises\u2063 constitutional concerns.<\/p>\n<p>Kenneth Eugene Smith, \u2062an inmate\u200b on Alabama&#8217;s death row, is set to become the first person\u2064 to be executed by nitrogen hypoxia this week. His lawyers \u200chave filed a request with the U.S. Supreme Court to\u2064 consider whether Smith&#8217;s execution would violate \u200bthe\u2063 Constitution. They \u200bcontend that since this is the state&#8217;s second attempt at carrying out the death penalty, and the first attempt went \u2062wrong due to reasons\u200d the state should have known about, it raises constitutional concerns.<\/p>\n<p>Smith was\u2064 found guilty of killing Elizabeth Dorlene Sennett \u2063in 1988 \u200din\u2064 Colbert County, Alabama, as part of a murder-for-hire plot. Sennett, a pastor&#8217;s wife, suffered repeated beatings and stabbings. Smith confessed \u200cto his involvement\u2063 in\u200b the murder and has been\u200d on death row since 1996.<\/p>\n<p>Smith is scheduled to be executed on Thursday using nitrogen hypoxia, which would mark the first use of this method of execution since its\u200b introduction in 1982. The\u2063 state argues that the use of nitrogen gas will \u200brender the victim unconscious rapidly. However, opponents argue that this untested method \u200dof \u200dexecution\u200d is akin to unethical human experiments.<\/p>\n<p>Previously, Smith challenged the state&#8217;s decision to execute him via lethal injection, but the \u200cU.S. Supreme \u200bCourt\u200d ruled in favor of the state last year. However, the court declined to reconsider the decision of a \u200blower court that\u200d upheld Smith&#8217;s right to die \u200cvia fatal gas injection instead of injection.<\/p>\n<p>In their request\u2064 to the Supreme Court, Smith&#8217;s lawyers highlighted the physical and psychological\u200c pain caused by the state&#8217;s repeated failed attempts to establish IV\u2064 access during previous execution \u2063attempts. They argue that ADOC&#8217;s failed attempt to\u2062 execute Smith caused \u2063him severe physical pain and psychological torment, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/us-includes-controversial-cluster-munitions-in-aid-package-to-ukraine-for-second-time\/\" title=\"US includes controversial cluster munitions in aid to Ukraine again.\">including post-traumatic stress disorder<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Furthermore, they question if a second attempt to execute a condemned\u200b person following\u200b a single, \u200ccruelly willful attempt violates the prohibition against cruel and unusual punishments\u2063 under\u200c the Eighth and Fourteenth Amendments to the United States Constitution.<\/p>\n<p>Smith&#8217;s request to the Supreme Court focuses\u2064 on the constitutionality\u200b of a state attempting to execute a person twice after the first attempt\u2063 failed. This issue has only been previously considered by the \u200dcourt in one instance, where a\u200d prisoner in Louisiana escaped \u200dan electric \u2062chair\u200d execution due to a \u200dmechanical malfunction. The court ruled, with a 5-4 decision,\u200d that the second\u2064 attempt would not be unconstitutional under the Eighth Amendment&#8217;s ban on cruel and unusual \u2063punishments.<\/p>\n<p>Smith&#8217;s \u200battorneys referenced a 1947 ruling in their \u2063court brief, \u2063in which one of the justices&#8217;\u2063 opinions supported the argument that\u2062 a second \u2064attempt to execute a person after the first unsuccessful\u2064 attempt would violate the Constitution.<\/p>\n<p>The U.S. Supreme Court will now review Smith&#8217;s request\u200d and decide whether his execution would indeed \u2062violate the U.S. Constitution. This\u200d <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/supreme-court-pauses-restrictions-on-biden-admin-contacting-social-media-companies\/\" title=\"Supreme Court halts limits on Biden Admin's communication with social media firms.\">case raises important questions<\/a> about the limits of state power and the prohibition of cruel and \u2064unusual punishments.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Alabama is set to perform its first nitrogen gas execution, but the inmate&#8217;s attorneys are urging the U.S. Supreme Court to assess if this violates the Constitution. This comes after the state&#8217;s previous unsuccessful attempt to carry out the execution<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2196,"featured_media":2155936,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/cndimages.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/IMG_2758-scaled-1.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[542],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2155935","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-oann"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/cndimages.nyc3.digitaloceanspaces.com\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/IMG_2758-scaled-1.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2155935","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2196"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2155935"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2155935\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2155936"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2155935"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2155935"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2155935"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}