Alabama executes a man with nitrogen gas, the first time the new method has been used
Alabama executed a convicted
murderer with nitrogen
gas Thursday, putting him to death with a first-of-its-kind method that once again placed the U.S. at the forefront of the debate over capital punishment. The state said the method would be humane
, but critics called it cruel
and experimental
. Officials said Kenneth Eugene Smith, 58, was pronounced
dead at 8:25 p.m. at an Alabama prison after breathing pure nitrogen gas through a face mask to cause oxygen deprivation
. It marked the first time that a new execution method has been used in the United States since lethal
injection, now the most commonly used method, was introduced in 1982.
tips
convict 罪犯;vt. 宣告有罪
nitrogen 氮气
oxygen 氧气
humane 有人情味的;人道的
cruel 残忍的(crud- crude 粗糙的;天然的)
experimental 实验的
pronounce 宣告;发音(pronunciation 发音)
deprivation 剥夺;免职
deprive 剥夺
lethal 致命的