Brad Sigmon, a 67-year-old South Carolina inmate, was executed by firing squad on Friday, March 7, marking the first execution of its kind in the U.S. in 15 years. The South Carolina Department of Corrections (SCDC) confirmed his death at Broad River Correctional Institution in Columbia at 6:08 p.m.
Sigmon was sentenced to death in 2002 for the 2001 murders of David and Gladys Larke, his ex-girlfriend’s parents, in their Greenville County home. Prosecutors said he bludgeoned them to death as part of a failed plan to kidnap their daughter and take her on a trip before killing her and himself, according to the AP.
Sigmon’s lawyers argued that he chose the firing squad over the electric chair and lethal injection, fearing inhumane suffering. His execution was only the fourth by firing squad in the U.S. since 1977, with the last occurring in Utah in 2010. South Carolina re-legalized the firing squad 3 years ago by signing SB 200.
A group of protesters gathered outside the prison before the execution, holding signs that read, “All life is precious” and “Execute justice, not people.” Sigmon’s legal team and supporters had urged Gov. Henry McMaster to commute his sentence, citing his remorse, good behavior in prison, and struggles with severe mental illness.
Despite appeals, the execution proceeded, reviving debates over capital punishment and the methods used to carry it out.
