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Chief U.S District Judge Emily Marks declined a request from
Anthony Boyd to block his scheduled Oct. 23 execution. Marks
said Boyd had not met the legal burden for the “extraordinary
remedy of a preliminary injunction.” Boyd’s legal team is
appealing the decision.
Alabama began using nitrogen gas last year to carry out some
executions. The method uses a gas mask to replace breathable air
with pure nitrogen gas, causing the inmate to die from lack of
oxygen.
Boyd, 53, argued the method violates the Eighth Amendment
because inmates are subjected to “conscious suffocation” and
feel the pain and terror of being deprived of oxygen. He had
suggested a firing squad or taking an oral mixture of fatal
drugs prepared by a medical professional as better alternatives.
“The Court does not doubt that a person consciously deprived of
oxygen even for two minutes under the Protocol experiences
discomfort, panic, and emotional distress,” Marks wrote.
But she added that the U.S. Constitution “does not guarantee
Boyd a painless death” and that the fear of impending death is
part of every execution.
The ruling came after a hearing last month in which testimony
focused on estimates of how long an inmate is awake during a
nitrogen execution and the reasons for the shaking and gasping
movements exhibited by inmates executed with the gas.
The protocol requires prison officials to keep the nitrogen
flowing for at least 15 minutes or five minutes after monitoring
shows the inmate no longer has a heartbeat. The state indicated
in court records that the first five inmates executed by
nitrogen gas died at times ranging from 16 to 23 minutes after
the nitrogen gas began flowing, Marks wrote.
A jury convicted Boyd of capital murder for his role in the 1993
killing of Gregory Huguley in Talladega. Prosecutors said
Huguley was burned to death after he failed to pay for $200
worth of cocaine.
A prosecution witness testified as part of a plea deal that Boyd
taped the victim’s feet before another man doused him with
gasoline and set Huguley on fire.
Boyd has maintained he did not commit the 1993 murder. His
supporters have launched a billboard campaign urging the state
to halt the execution.
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