A death row inmate in Louisiana has become the fifth person in the United States to be executed using nitrogen gas, marking a controversial milestone in the country’s ongoing debate over capital punishment methods.

Jessie Hoffman Jr, 46, was executed late Tuesday after the US Supreme Court rejected a final appeal to halt the procedure. His death marks Louisiana’s first execution in 15 years and has reignited discussion around the ethics and legality of nitrogen hypoxia as an execution method.

Hoffman had been convicted of the 1997 murder of Mary “Molly” Elliott, who was killed in New Orleans when Hoffman was just 18 years old. He had spent nearly three decades on death row.

Controversial Method Under Scrutiny

Nitrogen hypoxia, a relatively new method of execution, involves the inhalation of pure nitrogen, which displaces oxygen in the body, leading to death by asphyxiation. State officials have defended the method as painless and efficient, but critics — including Hoffman’s legal team — argue it may violate constitutional protections against cruel and unusual punishment.

Hoffman’s lawyers had pushed for the execution to be halted, citing previous cases where inmates appeared to gasp, convulse, or shake — involuntary physical responses believed to be caused by oxygen deprivation. Despite these concerns, the courts upheld the state’s decision to proceed.

A Divisive Moment in US Execution History

The use of nitrogen gas as an execution method has been adopted by a small number of US states as lethal injection protocols have come under increasing scrutiny due to drug shortages and legal challenges.

While state officials maintain that nitrogen hypoxia causes death quickly and without pain, human rights advocates and medical professionals have questioned whether its effects are fully understood or humane.

National Reaction

The execution has drawn mixed responses across the country. Supporters of capital punishment argue that the state acted justly in carrying out a long-delayed sentence, while opponents have condemned the method and called for a moratorium on executions using nitrogen.

Civil liberties organisations have vowed to continue challenging the use of nitrogen gas, warning that it sets a dangerous precedent for how the US approaches execution in the future.

As debate continues, Hoffman’s execution has added fuel to the national conversation about the ethics, legality, and future of capital punishment in America.

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