Alabama is set to execute Demetrius Terrence Frazier, 52, for the 1991 rape and murder of Pauline Brown in Birmingham. This execution, scheduled for today, will mark the state’s first use of nitrogen gas as a method of capital punishment.
Alabama began utilizing nitrogen gas for executions in 2024, becoming the first state to adopt this method. The process involves replacing breathable air with pure nitrogen, leading to death by oxygen deprivation.
Frazier’s legal team has raised concerns about the potential for suffering during this method, but a federal judge recently denied a request to halt the execution, stating that Frazier failed to demonstrate that the method is unconstitutionally cruel or causes significant psychological distress.
Alabama is set to make history as it prepares to execute Demetrius Terrence Frazier, 52, using nitrogen gas—a method never before used in the United States for capital punishment. Frazier was convicted for the 1991 rape and murder of Pauline Brown in Birmingham.
This execution, scheduled for today, will be the first time Alabama adopts this controversial method of capital punishment.
The state began considering nitrogen gas as an alternative execution method in response to difficulties obtaining lethal injection drugs and legal disputes surrounding execution protocols.
Nitrogen hypoxia involves replacing breathable air with pure nitrogen, causing death by oxygen deprivation. Proponents of the method argue that it is more humane and less prone to procedural errors than lethal injections.
However, opponents, including Frazier’s legal team, have raised concerns about the untested nature of the method and the potential for unforeseen complications.
A federal judge recently denied a request to halt the execution, stating that Frazier had not demonstrated that the method was unconstitutionally cruel or caused significant psychological distress.
The case has sparked national debate over the ethics of capital punishment and the continued search for “humane” execution methods.
