Witnesses have spoken out after an Alabama inmate became the first person to be executed by nitrogen hypoxia.
Kenneth Eugene Smith spent more than three decades behind bars for the murder of Elizabeth Sennett - who suffered eight fatal stabbings to her chest and two to her neck.
Prosecutors said the prisoner was one of two men who were each paid $1,000 by Charles Sennett, the pastor of the Westside Church of Christ in Sheffield, Alabama, in 1988, to forcefully take his wife's life, per CBS News.
At the trial, Smith confessed to roughing Elizabeth up but denied intending to kill her. The jury voted by 11-1 to give him a life sentence, but they were overruled by the judge who sent him to death row.
In November 2022, the inmate was scheduled to be executed with lethal injection, but prison officials tried unsuccessfully to find a vein and had to call off the execution after four hours.
Almost 14 months after the botched attempt - and several last-ditch attempts to spare Smith's life by attorneys - the 58-year-old was taken to the execution chamber again on Thursday (January 25), however, this time he was strapped to a gurney and had a gas mask placed over his face before a stream of 100 percent nitrogen gas suffocated him.
According to Daily Mail, Smith was officially pronounced dead at 8:25PM local time, 22 minutes after the nitrogen gas was first administered. At 8:07PM, a corrections officer examined him, before stepping back against the wall to let the execution resume.
Before the nitrogen was administered yesterday, Smith had his last meal which was steak, eggs, and hash browns.
Onlookers who witnessed correctional authorities administer the death penalty said the prisoner shared some chilling final words with his family and those watching through a glass window.
Smith reportedly said: "Tonight Alabama causes humanity to take a step backward... Thank you for supporting me. Love you all," as cited by The Independent. "I’m leaving with love, peace, and light," before turning to his family and signing "I love you."
One of the five members of the media transported to Holman Correctional Facility in Atmore to witness the execution spoke out about the haunting event and said they had never seen an execution unfold like Smith's did.
"I've been to four previous executions and I've never seen a condemned inmate thrash in the way that Kenneth Smith reacted to the nitrogen gas," Lee Hedgepeth told BBC. "Kenny just began to gasp for air repeatedly and the execution took about 25 minutes total."
However, Alabama Corrections Commissioner John Hamm explained that the "thrashing" reaction was expected as part of the side effects of nitrogen hypoxia as breathing it in causes cells in the body to break down which leads to death.
Alabama Governor Kay Ivey confirmed the prisoner's death in a statement, that read: "After more than 30 years and attempt after attempt to game the system, Mr Smith has answered for his horrendous crimes. I pray that Elizabeth Sennett's family can receive closure after all these years dealing with that great loss," per BBC.
Mike Sennett - who is one of Elizabeth's sons - also opened up to the media after the execution was completed and remarked that his mother "got her justice" after the murderer's "debt was paid" tonight.
"Nothing happened here today that’s going to bring Mom back. It's kind of a bittersweet day. We're not going to be jumping around, hooting and hollering 'hooray' and all that. That's not us. But we're glad this day is over," he said at a press conference.
"The Bible says evil deeds have consequences - and Kenneth Smith made some bad decisions 35 years ago - and his debt was paid tonight," he added.
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