• News
  • Life
  • TV & Film
  • Beauty
  • Style
  • Home
  • News
    • Celebrity
    • Entertainment
    • Politics
    • Royal Family
  • Life
    • Animals
    • Food & Drink
    • Women's Health
    • Mental Health
    • Sex & Relationships
    • Travel
    • Real Life
  • TV & Film
    • True Crime
    • Documentaries
    • Netflix
    • BBC
    • ITV
    • Tyla Recommends
  • Beauty
    • Hair
    • Make-up
    • Skincare
  • Style
    • Home
    • Fashion
    • Shopping
  • Advertise
  • Terms
  • Privacy & Cookies
  • LADbible Group
  • LADbible
  • UNILAD
  • SPORTbible
  • GAMINGbible
  • UNILAD Tech
  • FOODbible
  • License Our Content
  • About Us & Contact
  • Jobs
  • Latest
  • Topics A-Z
  • Authors
Facebook
Instagram
X
Threads
TikTok
Submit Your Content
Eerie reason why some US states brought back controversial death row execution method

Home> News> Crime

Updated 12:05 22 May 2025 GMT+1Published 11:44 22 May 2025 GMT+1

Eerie reason why some US states brought back controversial death row execution method

Brad Sigmon become the first person in almost 15 years to be executed by a previously banned method earlier this year

Rhianna Benson

Rhianna Benson

In March of this year, convicted killer Brad Sigmon became the first death row inmate to be executed via a gory method that had previously been banned in the United States for over 15 years.

It was previously ruled that the South Carolina murderer - who was sentenced to death back in 2002 for the fatal beating of his ex-girlfriend's parents, David and Gladys Larke - would die via lethal injection.

The date of Sigmon's death was initially planned for February 2021, but following a number of disturbing complications (which we'll get into later), the method of execution was suddenly changed.

Following several delays, the 67-year-old was put to death on 7 March by firing squad - a previously forbidden means of execution.

Advert

Sigmon was put to death earlier this year (South Carolina Department of Corrections)
Sigmon was put to death earlier this year (South Carolina Department of Corrections)

The firing squad was once believed a quick, effective means of killing, which federal officials argued saw minimal pain inflicted. By the time the late 90s/early 00s rolled around, however, the method had been banned in the majority of death penalty states.

As a result, the lethal injection became the most common means of execution, with lawmakers insisting it was a more humane way to cause death.

However, in recent years, other methods have resurged as a result of a series of eerie complications.

Advert

Around the same time that Sigmon's execution date was set, a nationwide shortage of the drugs needed to facilitate a lethal injection execution hit headlines across America.

The shortage had been triggered by existing prison supplies having expired, and pharmaceutical firms refusing to dispense any more, in protest against capital punishment.

According to CNN, another ongoing ethical debate at the time argued that the lethal injection wasn't always a successful means of execution.

Firing squad executions were previously banned (Getty Stock Images)
Firing squad executions were previously banned (Getty Stock Images)

Advert

The case of Oklahoma rapist and murderer Clayton Lockett was often referenced by opponents of lethal injection, after a number of untested drugs saw it taking over 43 minutes for his life to end.

According to USA Today, the convict writhed, groaned and convulsed throughout his execution, in a case that drew national and international attention.

As a result, there has been revived interest in other methods of administering the death penalty - including the previously banned firing squad, a primarily military method.

It was eventually ruled that the controversial execution method would once again be practiced in a number of states, and it was first used in South Carolina on Sigmon.

Advert

A number of prison employees had volunteered to end Sigmon's life in March of this year. The killer was sat in a chair in the courtyard of the state's Broad River Correctional Institution, a basin being placed underneath his body to catch his blood.

There was previously a shortage of the drugs needed for a lethal injection (Getty Stock Images)
There was previously a shortage of the drugs needed for a lethal injection (Getty Stock Images)

A hood was then placed over his face, and target placed onto his chest.

A number of lawyers, religious counsellors and members of his victims' family witnessed his death, which AP News journalist Jeffrey Collins who was also in attendance later described as having come with 'no warning or countdown'.

Advert

"At that point, his arm tensed up when he got shot," Collins also recalled. "There was kind of this brief moment of tensing."

Featured Image Credit: Jerry Cabluck/Sygma via Getty Images

Topics: Crime, True Crime, US News

Rhianna Benson
Rhianna Benson

Rhianna is an Entertainment Journalist at LADbible Group, working across LADbible, UNILAD and Tyla. She has a Masters in News Journalism from the University of Salford and a Masters in Ancient History from the University of Edinburgh. She previously worked as a Celebrity Reporter for OK! and New Magazines, and as a TV Writer for Reach PLC.

X

@rhiannaBjourno

Advert

Advert

Advert

  • Death row murderer left ‘convulsing’ after making eerie hand gesture during execution via controversial method
  • Death row doctor revealed disturbing details about controversial execution method only used in certain states
  • Eerie last words of death row inmates revealed
  • Death row inmate Gregory Hunt's sobering six-word admission right before his execution

Choose your content:

11 hours ago
12 hours ago
  • 11 hours ago

    Camp Mystic security guard issues emotional statement after using mattresses in heroic act to rescue girls from deadly floods

    In total, at least 82 people are confirmed to have lost their lives following the flash floods in Texas on Friday (4 July)

    News
  • 11 hours ago

    Meghan Markle fans spot ‘creepy’ detail in newly shared photos with her and Prince Harry

    The Duchess of Sussex shared a new Instagram post to celebrate the Fourth of July

    News
  • 11 hours ago

    Kate Middleton ignited major debate after breaking decades-old Wimbledon 'rule'

    Both Kate Middleton and Meghan Markle broke the exact same rule - but they received very different treatment for the fashion faux pas

    News
  • 12 hours ago

    Paramedic jailed after secretly giving pregnant woman abortion pill

    Stephen Doohan has been sentenced to 10 years and six months in prison

    News