Experts on SC's New Firing Squad: 'It's Going to Be Traumatic'

Witnesses to South Carolina's planned firing squad execution of convicted killer Brad Sigmon, the first of its kind in the state, will watch Friday from behind "bullet-resistant" glass. But experts nonetheless fear ricochets are possible, along with hearing damage and exposure to dangerous fumes, NPR reports. According to the state's execution protocol, three people will stand 15 feet from Sigmon, firing live ammunition from rifles through a hole in the wall of the execution chamber. It's the same brick room used in lethal injection and electric chair executions. But "I wouldn't shoot in that space," firearms instructor Drew Swift tells NPR. "I wouldn't even be in the room."

"The history of the firing squad is marked by gruesome mistakes when marksmen missed their target," political scientist Austin Sarat writes at the Conversation. Former South Carolina executioner Craig Baxley tells NPR that a bullet that misses Sigmon's heart could hit other items in the room and "ricochet anywhere." Witnesses and members of the firing squad would be at risk, says Baxley, who was shocked to learn the state chose to carry out the execution inside. "It's definitely not advisable to shoot multiple cartridges off inside of an enclosed space with no ventilation," Swift tells NPR, which notes that lead particles and toxic gases will be released. But "my biggest concern would be my hearing," he adds, noting three rifles simultaneously firing .308-caliber ammunition will be very loud.

The state's execution protocol doesn't make mention of hearing protection for witnesses or members of the firing squad. The state corrections department didn't respond to questions about noise levels, ventilation concerns, or whether the execution chamber's two-way mirror glass was given any bullet-resistant protection, per NPR. Yet another concern is the effect of the execution on witnesses, who should be able to see Sigmon until he's declared dead. "If three shots are all going to the same place that's aimed, that's going to be a really big hole. There's going to be a lot of blood. There's going to be a good amount of gore," says Swift. "It's going to be traumatic." (More execution stories.)