In the United States, firing squad executions have a long history and have garnered renewed attention. Mikal Mahdi was recently executed by a firing squad in South Carolina for the 2004 murder of off-duty police officer Captain James Myers. Mahdi sat restrained while three volunteer corrections staff simultaneously shot a target over his heart. This marked the fifth firing squad execution in the US since 1977.
Five states, including South Carolina, have legalized firing squads as an execution method, with Idaho being the most recent addition. The firing squad execution of Mahdi followed that of another inmate, Brad Keith Sigmon, last month in South Carolina. Mahdi’s attorneys called the method “a horrifying act” that has no place in a civilized society.
Mahdi’s past included years of physical and emotional abuse, leading to a troubled childhood and multiple stays in juvenile detention facilities. His attorneys argued that he should have been spared due to his lack of mental health care and traumatic upbringing. Nevertheless, Mahdi was executed for his crimes.
While Mahdi’s execution is the 12th in the US this year, there are more scheduled, including lethal injections in Texas and Alabama. Despite defense arguments about Mahdi’s troubled past, the state of South Carolina defended the constitutionality of its execution methods. The debate around firing squad executions and capital punishment in the US continues as more states approve death warrants each year.
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