Oklahoma Gov. Mary Fallin has signed a law making an untested execution method — nitrogen gas — the backup to lethal injections. The nitrogen, which starves the body of oxygen, replaced the electric chair as the alternate to the needle.
"Oklahoma executes murderers whose crimes are especially heinous," Fallin said in a statement. "I support that policy, and I believe capital punishment must be performed effectively and without cruelty. The bill I signed today gives the state of Oklahoma another death penalty option that meets that standard."
Oklahoma's executions are on hold while the U.S. Supreme Court decides whether its lethal injection combination — specifically the use of the controversial drug midazolam — is constitutional or too cruel to use on condemned murderers.
Because nitrogen hypoxia has not been used as a form of execution in the U.S., it is certain to trigger legal challenges.
Oklahoma is one of several states that have turned to alternate execution methods after running into trouble obtaining lethal injection chemicals because big pharmaceutical companies won't sell them to prisons any more.
