A South Carolina inmate convicted of double murder of his ex-girlfriend’s parents was executed by firing squad on Friday, the first US inmate to be killed by this method in 15 years, according to authorities in the state.
“The death sentence for Brad Keith Sigmon was carried out tonight, in compliance with the order of the South Carolina Supreme Court and in accordance with state law. The execution was carried out by a three-person firing squad,” the South Carolina Department of Corrections said.
The execution of Sigmon, 67, is only the fourth execution in the United States by firing squad since the reinstatement of capital punishment in 1976, according to the Death Penalty Information Center, cited by the American network CNN. The last one occurred in 2010.
The procedure has consisted of the firing squad, three people from the Department of Corrections, standing 4.5 meters away and firing high-caliber bullets into the heart of the prisoner. Among the witnesses who have seen it are relatives of the victims, the lawyer of the condemned man or three members of the media.
Sigmon opted for this method of execution instead of lethal injection or the electric chair. In a statement released by his lawyer, Sigmon said: “I want my final statement to be one of love and a call to my fellow Christians to help us put an end to the death penalty.”
Sigmon was convicted in 2001 for the murder of his ex-girlfriend’s parents with a baseball bat. The man then admitted that he also intended to attack his ex-girlfriend, but she managed to escape.
