Lawyers for Alabama inmate Carey Dale Grayson, are moving to federal court to halt their clients scheduled execution by controversial nitrogen hypoxia on November 21.
In January 2024, Alabama executed Kenneth Smith in a similar manner, which brought the state under intense scrutiny as reports suggested that Smith remained alive for at least 22 minutes after he was exposed to pure nitrogen.
In their court filing, Grayson’s attorneys also referred to the statements of the witnesses of Smith’s death and the results of the subsequent autopsy conducted on him, which found that different fluids and dark maroon blood were present in Smith’s lungs after his passing.
Grayson’s legal team told the court that other states have followed protocols to investigate the controversial execution method in which the subjected person is forced to wear a mask where oxygen is replaced with pure nitrogen, leading to the criminal’s death.
The lawyers argued that the state of Alabama is clearly ignoring signs that show that nitrogen hypoxia results in “unconstitutionally torturous executions.” Garyson’s attorneys also hired an expert to study the findings of the autopsy, who called these reports “highly concerning.”
When Alabama authorized the use of “lethal gas” nitrogen for capital punishment purposes in 2018, Grayson himself chose this procedure for his execution, but he was not aware of its exact procedure as the state had yet to finalize the process.
Before Grayson, another criminal Alan Eugene Miller is also scheduled to be executed on September 26 through nitrogen hypoxia for killing three men in 1999.
Despite facing criticism for the ineffectiveness and the cruel nature of punishment, the state of Alabama said that Smith’s execution was carried out according to the “textbook.”
Doctors tried to explain the reasons for the presence of dark maroon blood and fluids in Smith’s lungs after his death. Anesthesiologist Dr Brian McAlary described how negative pressure pulmonary edema can happen when someone tries to breathe against a blocked airway, causing fluid to enter the lungs from the blood vessels. McAlary emphasized that if no sedative is given before administering nitrogen gas, the person is more likely to panic, which is further likely to trigger this problem.
Former chief medical examiner of New Hampshire, Dr. Thomas Andrew, argued that lung congestion is a common sign of asphyxia, which happens after heart failure. He also reinforces the importance of administering sedation to ensure that the criminals do not panic before their death.
