The US military is set to livestream the execution of Nidal Hasan by firing squad, as announced by US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth. This would be the first time the US Army has used a firing squad since 1945. Hasan, a former military psychiatrist, fatally shot 13 unarmed US soldiers at Fort Hood military base in Texas in 2009.
This development follows concerns over botched executions, including the recent failed lethal injection of Christa Pike, who recovered after the attempt. The US has introduced both new and older execution methods, such as firing squads, the electric chair, and the gas chamber, amid renewed federal support for the death penalty.
Lethal injection has been the most common execution method in the US since its introduction in Texas in 1982. The Death Penalty Information Center, a non-profit think tank, states that there have been 64 botched executions in the past 50 years, with 51 of these being lethal injections, out of a total of 1,683 executions. Medical experts and those who study executions suggest that all methods used in the US can cause severe pain, particularly when botched.
Reasons for botched lethal injections include inadequate staff training, degraded or expired drugs, or states experimenting with new drug combinations. Some states have adopted nitrogen gas as a new method, with Alabama and Louisiana having carried out executions using it. Other states have reauthorised the electric chair, which has a history of botched executions, with South Carolina using it as its default method.