Alabama’s plan for nitrogen gas execution slammed as ‘hostile to religion’ in lawsuit

Attorneys for the spiritual adviser of a soon-to-be executed inmate filed a lawsuit Wednesday alleging that the restrictions placed upon the adviser due to the method of execution are “hostile to religion.”

Officials with the Alabama Department of Corrections instructed the Rev. Jeff Hood that it could be dangerous to his health when he stands by Kenneth Eugene Smith in the execution chamber, according to a report.

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Smith is slated to be the first inmate in Alabama to be put to death via nitrogen gas, and Hood purportedly was asked to sign a waiver recognizing the risks that could arise if he were to be within 3 feet of Smith’s gas mask, the complaint reads.

Nitrogen naturally makes up roughly 78% of the air that people inhale, but pure nitrogen inhaled at the right level will deprive the body of oxygen and kill a person in what experts believe to be a painless procedure.

“They’ve asked me to sign a waiver, which to me speaks to the fact that they’re already concerned that things could go wrong,” Hood said.

It is “highly unlikely event that the hose supplying breathing gas to the mask were to detach, an area of free-flowing nitrogen gas could result, creating a small area of risk [approximately two feet] from the outflow,” the waiver sent to Hood purportedly read.

The restrictions placed upon Hood impede his ability to minister to Smith, Hood alleges.

Distance in particular would “deny a prisoner his chosen spiritual [adviser’s] touch at the most critical juncture of his life: his death,” Hood’s lawyers said.

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The United States Supreme Court has ruled that states must yield to the religious wishes of inmates scheduled for executions and allow pastors to pray with them and even touch them, the report noted.

Smith was sentenced to death for the 1988 murder-for-hire killing of Alabama native Elizabeth Sennett, according to the report.