Utah Brings Back Firing Squads

became the only state to allow firing squads for executions Monday when Gov. Gary Herbert signed a law approving the controversial method's use when no lethal-injection drugs are available.

Herbert has said he finds the firing squad "a little bit gruesome," but Utah is a capital punishment state and needs a backup execution method in case a shortage of the drugs persists.

"We regret anyone ever commits the heinous crime of aggravated murder to merit the death penalty, and we prefer to use our primary method of lethal injection when such a sentence is issued," Herbert spokesman Marty Carpenter said. "However, when a jury makes the decision and a judge signs a death warrant, enforcing that lawful decision is the obligation of the executive branch."

The measure's approval is the latest illustration of some states' frustration over bungled executions and difficulty obtaining the drugs. Utah is one of several states seeking new forms of capital punishment after a botched Oklahoma lethal injection last year.

States have struggled to keep up their drug inventories as European manufacturers opposed to capital punishment refuse to sell the components of lethal injections to U.S. prisons. The Texas deadline is the most imminent, but other states are struggling, too.

http://www.newsmax.com/Newsfront/utah-firing-squad-signed-law/2015/03/23/id/6320...

I think Florida needs to bring back "Ol Sparky" as our primary method and give the prisoners an option of lethal injection if the drugs are available!!

So should Ohio. I also think, they SHOULD allow these criminals the ability to choose the way they're executed too. Sort of drives home the point you are going to die for your crimes against our society, when you have to pick the way the state is going to execute you. And I'm all for the death penalty being a true deterrent to crime. That's why I say executions should be public as well.

Good, Back in the day Utah sued and went all the way to SCOTUS for the right to execute GARY GILMORE a career felon who killed two store clerks during robberys. This was in the mid 70's after a ten year nationwide Hiatus from executions.

Cruel and unusual punishment, Shooting and hanging are exactly unusual nor are they cruel.

Quote from: daidalos on March 24, 2015, 01:54:32 AM
So should Ohio. I also think, they SHOULD allow these criminals the ability to choose the way they're executed too. Sort of drives home the point you are going to die for your crimes against our society, when you have to pick the way the state is going to execute you. And I'm all for the death penalty being a true deterrent to crime. That's why I say executions should be public as well.

Well if a prisoner is sentenced to hang but ops for lethal injection it seems to me it would go a long way to limit the protest and appeals. If they choose to fight the lethal injection you just say OK hang him!!

Quote from: Billy's bayonet on March 24, 2015, 04:23:59 PM
Good, Back in the day Utah sued and went all the way to SCOTUS for the right to execute GARY GILMORE a career felon who killed two store clerks during robberys. This was in the mid 70's after a ten year nationwide Hiatus from executions.

Cruel and unusual punishment, Shooting and hanging are exactly unusual nor are they cruel.

No they aren't. In fact hanging is still a prescribed punishment for treason against the United States. Also back in the fifties, the U.S. executed the Rosenberg's for Treason against the United States. They were executed using the old sparky method. 

You can read more here, if you still question these as "cruel and unusual" http://legal-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com/Cruel+and+Unusual+Punishment

When looking for the "case law" regarding what is or is not, as the SCOTUS, and the Congress has defined/enacted the law, I found this.

http://soundportraits.org/on-air/execution_tapes/complete_audio.php

Audio recordings of actual electrocution executions of the death penalty.

IF anyone is interested in listening to them. I"m going too, as who knows maybe it'll change my opinion on the subject. I highly doubt it, but maybe it will.