Hanging

Process: The day before the execution, the inmate is weighed so that a rehearsal hanging can be done with a sandbag. They do this to ensure that death is as quick as possible. If the rope is too short, then it can lead to strangulation and it could take up to 45 minutes of struggling for the prisoner to die. If the rope is too long, then it can cause decapitation. Right before the execution, the inmate’s legs and arms are tied, they are blindfolded, and the noose is put around their neck. The execution starts when the trap door is released and the prisoner falls through. The drop should cause the dislocation of the neck. However, most people struggle and instantaneous death is not common

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How long it should take? 4-11 minutes. Out of the three cases it took 4, 6, and 11 minutes to confirm death.

Ethics: In a dissenting opinion… U.S. Supreme Court Justice Harry Blackmun noted that under ideal circumstances, when a man is hanged “his vertebrae are dislocated and his spinal cord crushed; unconsciousness is immediate and death follows a short time later.” But he added that hanging “is a crude and imprecise practice, which always includes a risk that the inmate will slowly strangulate or asphyxiate, if the rope is too elastic or too short, or will be decapitated, if the rope is too taut or too long.’” These inhumane outcomes raise serious questions as to the ethical nature of hanging.

First person to be executed (since 1976 when the death penalty was reinstated): In Washington, on January 5, 1993, Westley Allan Dodd, a serial killer and convicted sex offender, was the first person to be executed by hanging.

Where is it legal? New Hampshire as a secondary method only. (It used to be legal in Washington and New Hampshire until deemed unconstitutional in 2018 and 2016, respectively.)

How many people have died since 1976? 3

Botched case? In Clayton, New Mexico, On April 26, 1901, Tom Ketchum was executed by hanging for an attempted train robbery and murder. Before Ketchum, there had never been a hanging in Clayton so there was not much experience conducting them. Sadly, the rope was too long and thin and when the trap door opened, he dropped straight to the ground and had his head torn right off.