January 11, 2024

Nitrogen is to be used for Inhumane Execution

Exit Founder & Director, Dr Philip Nitschke, says he is appalled and devastated that Nitrogen is to be used for Inhumane Execution by the State of Alabama in news today that the State has decided to go ahead with the execution of Kenny Smith using nitrogen hypoxia.

Having inspected, tried on and assessed the mask in the Holman Prison execution chamber on December 13, Philip’s only assessment of the methodology is that it is a new low for human kind in our treatment towards each other.

Philip appeared in December 2023 as an expert witness in the Alabama District Court on 20 December 2023 for the defence of Kenny Smith to try and stay his execution.

A long time opponent of the death penalty in all circumstances, Philip says his visit to Holman prison was ‘the stuff of nightmares’.

Kenny Smith is a decent human being who is sorry for his past mistakes and who has spent over 3 decades repenting.

‘Where is the forgiveness, let alone rehabilitation in this?’ asks Philip.

‘The US is a country like no other. It offers the best of humanity, but also the worst.’

‘The mask is macabre, it would be pure torture to have this device non-voluntarily strapped to your head while forcibly secured to a guerney with the equivalent of seat belts. You are then peered at from behind a visiting room window that is revealed (at the critical time) by the opening of a curtain, as if part of a magic trick.’

‘What exact message is the Holman Prison warden (aka ‘supertrooper‘) trying to send?’

‘The US justice system is sick. There is a distorted rule of law that shows no humanity.’

‘In my birth country of Australia, and adopted country of the Netherlands Kenny Smith would have served his life sentence more than a decade ago.’

‘How much revenge is enough?’

Of the US Philip said ‘I once thought I would like to live in the US. Let’s just say I’m glad my final choice was the Netherlands’

Philip Nitschke, Kenny Smith & Robert Grass, Holman Prison, 13 December 2023

Postscript

The Exit Sarco euthanasia device which is shortly to be used in Switzerland, operates on an open’ nitrogen hypoxia methodology. Furthermore Exit is involved ONLY in deaths which are voluntary and decisions which are long held and considered.

More about Nitrogen Hypoxia as a cause of a peaceful, elective death can be found in the Peaceful Pill eHandbook Essentials.

Read more on Philip’s BLOG from Sunday 7 January 2024.