Otis Singleton
The electric chair, also known as electrocution, is a method of execution used in the United States. While lethal injection is the primary means of execution in states where the death penalty is legal, seven states—Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Kentucky, Mississippi, Oklahoma, and Tennessee—allow the electric chair as an alternative method. South Carolina is the only state where electrocution is the primary method of execution, with lethal injection and firing squad offered as alternatives. The electric chair was first conceived in 1881 as a more humane form of execution than hanging and was first used in 1890.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| States where the electric chair is an authorized method of execution | Florida, Tennessee, Nebraska, Ohio, New York, Massachusetts |
| States where the death penalty is active | 27 states, as well as the federal government and the U.S. military |
| States with a moratorium on executions | California, Oregon, Pennsylvania |
| States without the death penalty | 23 states and the District of Columbia |
| States where lethal injection is the primary method of execution | All states where it is legal except South Carolina |
| States where inmates have chosen the electric chair over lethal injection | Virginia, Tennessee |
| States that have abolished capital punishment | Virginia |
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What You'll Learn
Lethal injection is the primary method of execution in the US
Lethal injection is the primary method of execution in the United States, where the death penalty is still active. However, some states offer alternatives to lethal injection, such as electrocution, also known as death by the electric chair.
The electric chair was first used in 1888, when New York executed William Kemmler in 1890. Soon, other states adopted this execution method. The electric chair was designed by George Fell, who changed the position of the electrodes to the head and the middle of the back. The executioner pulls a handle to connect the power supply, and the current passes through the electrodes, causing unconsciousness and death.
The last person to be executed by electric chair without the choice of an alternative method was Lynda Lyon Block on May 10, 2002, in Alabama. Since then, several inmates have chosen the electric chair over lethal injection, including Robert C. Gleason Jr. in Virginia in 2013, and Edmund Zagorski and David Earl Miller in Tennessee in 2018. The most recent execution by electric chair was of Nicholas Todd Sutton in 2020, also in Tennessee.
The use of the electric chair as a method of execution has been controversial. In 2008, the Nebraska State Supreme Court ruled that electrocution was unconstitutional, bringing an end to electric chair executions in the state. Some have advocated for a return to the electric chair due to the difficulty in finding lethal injection drugs. However, others have argued that electrocution is inconsistent with evolving standards of decency and the dignity of man, and that it is a cruel and unusual form of punishment.
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Electrocution was the sole method in Nebraska until 2008
Electrocution, or death by the electric chair, has been used as a method of execution in the United States since the late 19th century. The electric chair was first conceived in 1881 after a drunken dock worker in Buffalo, New York, experienced a tingling sensation when grabbing the guard rail in a Brush Electric Company arc lighting power house. The first electric chair was built in 1888, and the first execution using this method took place in New York's Auburn Prison on August 6, 1890. The prisoner, William Kemmler, was subjected to two shocks of 1,000 and 2,000 volts, with the second attempt causing his body to catch fire.
Following this first execution, other states began to adopt the electric chair as a method of execution. Nebraska was the last state to rely solely on electrocution as its method of execution until 2008, when the state's Supreme Court ruled that the method was unconstitutional. During the execution, the person is usually shaved and strapped to a chair with belts, with metal electrodes attached to the scalp, forehead, and leg.
Today, electrocution is not used as the sole method of execution in any state. Lethal injection is the primary means of execution in the United States, although some states continue to authorize other methods, including electrocution, lethal gas, and firing squads. In recent years, there have been controversies surrounding the method of execution, with some states facing challenges in obtaining the drugs required for lethal injections. As a result, some legislators have advocated for a return to the electric chair as a mandatory method of execution.
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Inmates can choose the electric chair over lethal injection
Lethal injection is the most widely used method of execution in the United States. However, many states authorize other methods, including electrocution, lethal gas, and firing squads. Inmates in some states can choose the electric chair over lethal injection.
In Tennessee, five people have been put to death by electrocution since the state resumed executions in 2018. These include Edmund Zagorski, David Earl Miller, Stephen Michael West, Lee Hall, and Nicholas Todd Sutton. Sutton, like the four inmates executed before him, chose the electric chair over lethal injection. Tennessee's death row inmates are choosing electrocution because they fear being frozen in place and feeling intense discomfort while the drugs work to kill them.
Inmates in other states have also chosen the electric chair over lethal injection. Robert C. Gleason Jr., a Virginia death row inmate, chose the electric chair and was executed in 2013. In Florida, John Spenkelink became the first person to be electrocuted after the Gregg v. Georgia decision by the Supreme Court of the United States in 1976.
Some legislators have advocated for a return to the electric chair as a mandatory method of execution due to the difficulty in obtaining lethal injection drugs. However, critics argue that electrocution is inconsistent with evolving standards of decency and the dignity of inmates.
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The electric chair was built in New York in 1888
The electric chair was first conceived in 1881 by a Buffalo, New York dentist named Alfred P. Southwick. It was developed over the next decade as a more humane alternative to hanging, which was the primary method of execution at the time.
In 1886, the New York State Government established a legislative commission to study alternate forms of capital punishment. Two years later, on June 4, 1888, the New York Legislature passed a law making electrocution the state's official method of execution. This decision was influenced by the war of the currents between Thomas Edison's direct current (DC) power system and George Westinghouse's alternating current (AC) system.
The committee tasked with designing the electric chair enlisted the services of Harold Brown, who had been campaigning against alternating current after several deaths caused by shoddy installation of pole-mounted AC arc lighting lines in New York City. Brown conducted a series of experiments using AC voltage to demonstrate its deadly effects.
The electric chair was built by Edwin F. Davis, New York's first "state electrician" or executioner. However, it was not until January 1, 1889, that the world's first electrical execution law went into full effect. The first execution by electric chair took place in New York's Auburn Prison on August 6, 1890.
Today, the electric chair is no longer the primary method of execution in the United States. Lethal injection is now the preferred method in most states, although some states still authorize electrocution as an alternative. In recent years, there have been calls by some legislators to bring back the electric chair due to the difficulty in obtaining lethal injection drugs.
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The electric chair was designed to be more humane than hanging
The electric chair was conceived in 1881 by Alfred P. Southwick, a dentist from Buffalo, New York. It was developed over the next decade as a more humane alternative to hanging. New York built the first electric chair in 1888 and executed William Kemmler in 1890.
The electric chair was designed to be a more humane method of execution than hanging. In 1886, New York State governor David B. Hill set up a three-member death penalty commission to investigate a more humane means of execution. The commission members surveyed the history of execution and sent out a questionnaire to government officials, lawyers, and medical experts, asking for their opinion. A slight majority of respondents recommended hanging over electrocution, with some instead recommending the abolition of capital punishment.
The electric chair was first used in 1890 and became a symbolic figure of capital punishment in the United States. It was initially thought to cause death through cerebral damage, but it was later established that death primarily results from ventricular fibrillation and cardiac arrest. Despite its historical significance, the use of the electric chair has declined with the adoption of lethal injection.
Today, electrocution is not used as the sole method of execution in any state. Lethal injection is the most widely used method of execution, but many states authorize other methods, including electrocution, lethal gas, and firing squads.
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Frequently asked questions
As of 2020, two states—Florida and Tennessee—explicitly authorize the electric chair as a method of execution. However, it is not used as the sole method of execution in any state.
Twenty-three states and the District of Columbia do not have the death penalty.
The primary means of execution in the US have been hanging, electrocution, the gas chamber, firing squad, and lethal injection.
New York was the first state to build and use the electric chair in 1888.
There have been controversies surrounding the use of the electric chair as a method of execution, with some arguing that it is "inconsistent with the concepts of evolving standards of decency and the dignity of man." In 2008, the state of Nebraska ruled the use of the electric chair as unconstitutional.
