Brad Sigmon, a convicted murderer in South Carolina, has elected to die by firing squad on March 7, marking the first use of this execution method in the state. The 67-year-old, sentenced for the brutal 2001 killings of his ex-girlfriend’s parents, made the decision amid ongoing legal challenges regarding South Carolina’s execution procedures.
Sigmon’s attorneys had sought a delay, questioning whether the state improperly administered lethal injection drugs in a previous execution. However, the courts denied the request, paving the way for Sigmon to become the first South Carolina inmate executed by firing squad. Only three firing squad executions have occurred in the U.S. since 1976, all in Utah, with the last in 2010.
Citing concerns over the electric chair’s brutality and the secrecy surrounding lethal injections, Sigmon’s attorney described his decision as choosing “what he knows will be a violent death.” Meanwhile, his legal team is pursuing a final appeal, arguing ineffective legal representation and mental illness should have been mitigating factors in his sentencing.
With no South Carolina governor granting clemency in nearly five decades, Sigmon’s fate now rests with the courts or Governor Henry McMaster. The state’s decision to reinstate the firing squad arose from difficulties obtaining lethal injection drugs due to supplier restrictions. In 2022, South Carolina spent $54,000 retrofitting its execution chamber to accommodate the firing squad method, ensuring the process remains shielded from public scrutiny.
As the execution date nears, the case has reignited debate over capital punishment and the state’s commitment to fairness and transparency in carrying out the death penalty.
“But the alternative is just as monstrous,” King said. “If he chose lethal injection, he risked the prolonged death suffered by all three of the men South Carolina has executed since September — three men Brad knew and cared for — who remained alive, strapped to a gurney, for more than twenty minutes.”
