The priest was among the many who witnessed the execution.
Convicted murderer Kenneth Eugene Smith became the first person in the United States to be executed with nitrogen gas, a controversial method that was condemned by human rights activists as well as the United Nations and the White House.
The 22-minute execution saw the 58-year-old killer writhing and writhing for several minutes in what his spiritual adviser, the Reverend Jeff Hood, described as a “horror show”. The priest, who was among many who witnessed the hanging, said that even the prison staff were unable to hide their shock at the scene.
“There was obvious surprise and surprise on his face. It’s hard to know what’s what in that situation, but I know the fear that I saw on the faces of the people in front of me,” Hood said. New York PostSaying that he heard people gasping as Smith struggled to breathe.
It looked like a scene made for Hollywood, he said. “It’s a sight that will never leave me.”
Nitrogen hypoxia execution, a method described by human rights activists as an “untested human experiment”, was carried out at Holman Prison in Alabama. This is the first change from the usual practice of lethal injection in the US. This method forces the prisoner to breathe nitrogen instead of oxygen through a respirator mask.
Hood claimed that although prison officials had assured that this method would result in instant death, the actual scene of the execution could not be farther from it.
“He always said it was going to be almost instantaneous. They were told it would be quick, easy and painless. He continued saying that this is the most humane way society has ever seen of hanging people. That he will pass out within a few seconds. What we saw last night were minutes, minutes and minutes of a horror show,” he said, adding that Smith “looked like a fish out of water, flailing again and again.”
The White House said Saturday it was “deeply troubled” by the death sentences. UN human rights chief Volker Turk, the European Union and civil liberties groups also expressed concern over the manner of Smith’s execution.
Kenneth Eugene Smith was on death row for more than three decades after being convicted of the murder-for-hire murder of a pastor’s wife in 1988.
