A South Carolina man on death row for murder has chosen to be executed by a firing squad. Inmate Brad Sigmon is scheduled to die March 7, and will be the first person to be executed in the U.S. using the method in 15 years. Sigmon, 67, chose the firing squad over the electric chair and lethal injection. In just a few weeks, he will be strapped to a chair with his head hooded, and a target on his heart, according to the Associated Press. Then, three volunteers are expected to shoot him from about 15 feet away. “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 20 minutes,” his lawyer, Gerald “Bo” King, wrote. “He does not wish to inflict that pain on his family, the witnesses, or the execution team. But, given South Carolina’s unnecessary and unconscionable secrecy, Brad is choosing as best he can.” He was convicted of killing his ex-girlfriend’s parents in 2001 with a baseball bat, and then kidnapped his ex at gunpoint, according to the outlet.
