Oklahoma Still Has Firing Squad As A Method For Executions

By Dave Levine

Oklahoma–the state that botched the execution of a death row inmate in 2015 but which is second in executions per capita behind only Texas–“has 48 male inmates and one female inmate on death row.”

The OK AG has put all executions “on hold” until the state can figure out its drug cocktail problem. As it stands, the death cocktail drugs made in Europe are no longer available to states in the U.S. as their host countries are all against capital punishment.

With death cocktails hard to get by states in the U.S., a few have resorted to other forms of execution such as Utah’s firing squad. Oklahoma has firing squads on the books as well but hasn’t employed them as they are only allowed if lethal injection and electrocution are found to be unconstitutional.

The following is from Wikipedia:

“In May 2016, an Oklahoma grand jury recommended the state to use nitrogen hypoxia as its sole method of execution rather than as a mere backup, after experts testified that the method would be pain-free, easy and “inexpensive”.”

We’ll be watching Oklahoma in 2017 to see if executions resume there.