SC Judge: Firing Squad, Electric Chair Unconstitutional

USA Today reports:

A South Carolina judge has found that the firing squad and electric chair are prohibited by the state’s constitution, a decision sure to be swiftly appealed as the state struggles to implement its new execution protocols.

In an order filed Tuesday evening, Judge Jocelyn Newman ruled that the South Carolina Department of Corrections is permanently barred from executing four death row inmates by electrocution or by firing squad

“In 2021, South Carolina turned back the clock and became the only state in the country in which a person may be forced into the electric chair if he refuses to elect how he will die. In doing so, the General Assembly ignored advances in scientific research and evolving standards of humanity and decency,” the order read.

Read the full article. Photo: Gov. Henry McMaster.

A South Carolina judge ruled that the state’s newly created execution firing squad, as well as its use of the electric chair, are unconstitutional, siding with four death row inmates in a decision likely to be appealed. https://t.co/0EQVeMLbE2

— ABC News (@ABC) September 7, 2022