Death by firing squad
 

I see Utah is about to excute 2 guys bye fring squad. Is this humane? Granted the guys shooting are probably expert marksman. I think it is ok, quick they should feel any pain and probably scares them more.

http://www.cnn.com/2003/LAW/05/22/fi....ap/index.html

I was more worried about the fact that they were seeking "volunteers" from the police in the communities that the crimes were committed in.

Kind of like having the arresting officers also kill the person . . .

Not sure if that is exactly healthy. Comes out too much like revenge.

In Utah, the condemned have a choice between firing squad and lethal injection (some choice huh)

They CHOSE firing squad! They MUST be on crack! :rolleyes:

I can see wanting to go out in a more masculine way. Lethal injection is going out like a bitch.

Well they chose it so its fine by me. If someone wants to be torture and drawn, quartered and then decapitation its their choice.

The firing sguad is a method that usually involves between four and six certified police officers. I'm assuming the men will die one at a time because in a traditional firing squad there is only one live bullet that is randomly placed in one of the guns to be used while all the rest are blanks. The officers are required to aim for the head (to make for a quick death) and none of the officers know which gun has the live bullet in it.
So in a sense, the officers will never know who fired the fatal shot...

Re: Death by firing squad
 

Utah is one of the few states that allows the condemned their choice of execution: lethal injection, hanging or firing squad.

The way the firing squad execution protocol works is that all but one or two of the rifles in the firing party are loaded with blanks; the live rounds are loaded at random and out of sight of the firing party so no one person can say "I fired the fatal bullet". They fire at a target pinned to the heart of the condemned (not at the head; it would be rather messy). Surprisingly, with a firing squad execution, there's a greater probability that the condemned's body could be donated to science or for organ transplant (except for the heart), unlike other forms of execution. That was Gary Gilmore's request when he was executed in 1977.

Recommend reading Norman Mailer's The Executioner's Song for a more detailed account of the Gilmore case and execution.

In a military firing squad the protocol is usually the same; the person in charge of the firing squad usually administers the coup de grace -- a shot in the head -- if the condemned wasn't felled immediately by the rifle volley.

Re: Re: Death by firing squad
 

Sorry, it is the heart, wasn't sure, I thought it was the head.....

At least a bullet would kill you quicker than any of the other forms of execution.

A firing squad might be a faster way to die, but my understanding of leathal injections is that they first put you sleep, and then inject you with something to stop the heart. So you really don't know how long it takes.

As for firing squad, well if that's what they want, then who am I to judge.

For what it's worth, as noted above, in the old military firing squads, all except one rifle had blanks. As I read the article today, in Utah, all but one rifle have live rounds. The results are the same -- nobody knows who actually fires fatal shots.

The results are also the same in another way...

Re: Re: Death by firing squad
 

:eek: I thought hanging was 'cruel and unusual punishment' according to the U.S! that's crazy! I would have thought that firing squad would have been classified as cruel & unusual, but I guess not.

If that's the way they want to go, more power to 'em!

Fire away!

If the people doing the shooting are willing to volunteer to do it, why bother with having multiple shooters with blanks? If you don't have a problem shooting somebody, why do you need to be in denial of being the one who actually killed the person?

Through the many years of the use of the firing squad, people tended to notice that over time the shooters would lose their edge and eventually suffer remorse over killing the condemned; the Russians (back in the Stalinist days) were notorious in that they were quite willing to replace worn-out firing squad members by making them the condemned.

The recoil of firing blank and live ammunition is almost indistinguishable. Only if you actually look at the ground and see the spent casing could you tell the difference, depending on how the blank was manufactured.

Interesting how the protocol for a military firing squad works; in early days, the condemned actually issued the order to fire; a blindfold was sometimes issued, but some would actually refuse it.

An excellent description is at http://www.urbanlegends.com/death/fi..._protocol.html .

Actually, a good point, but I'm not sure that military firing squads were always volunteers.

Re: Re: Re: Death by firing squad
 

There is actual pain-- excruciating pain felt by the person being hanged. And depending on the expertise of the person who fashioned the noose (and the length of rope) it can take up to several minutes for a neck to snap. Also, if the condemned is too heavy he can possbily become decapitated. Bad, for him, worse for the spectators.

Hanging is probably one of the least exact forms of capital punishment. That fact, not necessarily the fact that the end result of all forms is death, is what determines whether it is cruel and unusual.

***
As for firing squad, I can see how, psychologically, it is easier for the condemened to handle. In lethal injection, gas chamber and elelctric chair, there is much prep time in which the condemned is in the same room as their instrument of death.

For the firing squad, I believe they do not bring in the gunmen until after the condemned is blindfolded.

If I am ever to go that way, I would prefer firing squad...i've never heard of an instance where you had to be shot with a second round...and you know exactly when you will die.

Uh, if I were ever in that position I thinkI would attempt to take some of the guards marching me out with me. Give me a proper honor guard to escort me to hell in style.

This going peacefully to your death seems somehow wrong.

Also, violates that dylan Thomas Poem . . . Do not Go Gently into that Good Night

I agree. In fact, I have often that the jurors that vote for execution should have to perform it.

There is something cowardly about ordering others to kill someone based on your conclusions.

Hmm...what would be the fun of just aiming for the heart? *evil grin*

As I'd mentioned before, it's a hell of a lot less messy than having the firing squad aim for the head. The condemned dies from massive and traumatic injury to the heart or the major blood vessels.

Dude I think she meant the crotch.

Oh.. OK... duh! :D Great way to dispatch sex offenders! :)

Or James' missing appendage!

Nah, a Kappa Sig (and his um, instruments) deserve to go out with more style...

http://www.handykult.de/plaudersmili...ugh/behead.gif

Perhaps something like that?

Much better

Heh..exactly.

See? It'd be much cheaper than counseling and/or jail time.

Seems like a lot of urban legends here. Actually, military firing squads are not composed of volunteers. The firing party is detailed on orders to perform the duty and a commissioned officer is detailed to command the execution. There is no exact number to make up a firing party but the manual recommends between eight and twelve although more were not uncommon. Contrary to myth there are no blanks in any of the rifles. Usually an aiming card is pinned to the chest over the heart, but this is not always done. Despite an earlier comment, there is a very great difference in the recoil of a live round as opposed to the recoil (or almost total lack thereof) of a blank cartridge so it would be immediately apparent whether one fired a live or a blank round. The officer commanding the execution gives the order to fire and then draws his pistol to administer the 'coup de grace' which is a round through the head to make certain that the job is done and the poor bastard on the receiving end is not still alive and hurting. (Some versions of the manual give the officer discretion as to whether the coup is necessary and some require it). On rare occasions, if the person to be shot is a commissioned officer who has not been stripped of his rank, he may be allowed to command his own firing party. This is an old fashioned way to allow him to die with honor. A blindfold is offered and often refused. The last cigarette often seen in old movies is not covered in regulations and presumably offered at the discretion of the officer commanding when he offers the blindfold. All of this is spelled out in Service Regulations. There are minor variations among the Services and what I have related is from the 1917 edition of the Army's General Regulations for field and garrison service.
I believe the last military execution by firing party was in the middle 1940's so this would be a moot point except for the civil jurisdictions (two, I think) which allow this.
Personally, I'm not a big fan of capital punishment but considering the lesser of several evils I think I would choose firing party. There is some dignity in the ceremony and the impact of several large calibre rounds would knock out the receiver instantly so that even if a coup de grace were required it would be painless. The actual impact would be momentary.
I think the 'chair' is barbaric, hanging shameful, gas definitely cruel and unusual, and lethal injection so clinical that it robs one of any last shred of dignity. The firing squad allows a man to stand up and look death in the eye and face it with courage and dignity. Anyway, thats how I see it.
dekeguy
Capt, USAR
Forward Deployed

Hanging is the fastest (not that it was mentioned in this thread). When I was in Australia, I visited some old "gaols" (jails) and they gave a full explanation about it.
Weight and length of rope are precisely calculated and the same rope is never used twice (as it could break).
Used rope is cut up into short pieces so that it cannot be used.

Fascinating (if a tad morbid).