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UN experts alarmed by Alabama plan to kill prisoner using untried gas method
(www.theguardian.com)
this post was submitted on 04 Jan 2024
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Pure nitrogen gas is a significant industrial hazard for the reasons you stated. There is sure to be an element of panic since they are aware that they are being executed. That is going to be true whether the execution is being done via hypoxia, injection, or firing squad.
I suppose it depends on your exact definition of suffocating. You will absolutely be able to take full, satisfying breaths the entire time. If you do not tell them when the gas is turned on, even knowing that it's coming, they would be unlikely to even notice.
While there are no clinical studies (for obvious reasons), there is footage of industrial accidents. It seems that people succumb VERY quickly, possibly on their first full breath.
Most debates around execution methods are about the method itself. They typically exclude the morality and cruelty of the idea of a death penalty in general. I don't think this one can be separated, though. The concern is that it's untested for executions, but the only way to test it is to use it for executions. There is ample evidence of its use on livestock, but this is of limited value for humans.
As a side note, no medical doctors can be involved with executions. It's a direct violation of the Hippocratic Oath.