Process: The condemned is strapped to a chair and a black hood is put over their head. This ensures that the body does not move before getting killed as there has to be a precise shot. There are usually sandbags around the chair so that they can soak up the excess blood. Doctors locate the inmate’s heart and place a target over it. 5 executioners stand in an enclosure 20 feet away with a .30 caliber rifle that is loaded with single rounds. Although all 5 members must fire their gun, one executioner is given a blank to ensure that no one is able to tell who had the fatal shot.
How long should it take? Less than a minute.
Ethics: Although this is the quickest way to execute someone, there are some cases in the past, before it was made legal as a way of execution, of individuals bleeding to death because the bullets didn’t hit the heart. Compared to other methods though, this seems like the quickest way if done right.
First person to be executed (since 1976 when the death penalty was reinstated): In Utah, on January 17, 1977, Garry Gilmore was convicted of murder and was the first person to be executed by firing squad
Where is it legal? 3 states (Oklahoma, Mississippi, Utah) as secondary methods only
How many people have died since 1976? 3
Botched case: On May 16, 1879, Wallace Wilkerson was killed by a firing squad. He refused to get strapped down on wear a blindfold which made him aware of his situation. Right before he heard “Ready, aim …” he took a deep breath which made it so the firing squad hit his abdomen instead of his heart. He suffered for 27 minutes before he was pronounced dead.
5 Legal Ways of Execution 