Indiana lawmakers consider firing squad for state executions

Indiana law currently allows the use of lethal injection for executions. A new measure proposes the use of firearms as another method.

A Corrections and Criminal Law committee heard public testimony on a bill that would allow the use of a firing squad for executions. Sen. Mike Young (R-Indianapolis) authored the bill and said it’s not a question about the legality of the death penalty.

“The question here is, what do we do if we only have one option in which to carry out a legal order by the courts in the state of Indiana,” Young said.

The drug that the state currently uses for executions is called pentobarbital. It is expensive, has a limited shelf life and can be difficult to obtain. 

A handful of other states have instituted firing squads as a means of execution. 

Indiana currently has four inmates determined competent for execution. 

Zachary Stock with the Indiana Public Defender Council spoke against the proposal. He said the move would not offset the larger cost burden of capital punishment that lies in the legal system.

“Trading expensive drugs for inexpensive bullets is not going to meaningfully reduce the cost of execution,” Stock said.

Others that spoke against the move included representatives from the Catholic Church and the Death Penalty Policy Project.

Samantha Bresnahan is ACLU of Indiana Senior Policy Specialist took issue with lack of transparency.

“Executions are among the most serious acts a government can undertake, yet Senate Bill 11 would allow this method to be implemented behind a veil of secrecy, blocking disclosure and preventing relevant information from being introduced and examined in court,” Bresnahan said.

The bill also details the logistics of how a squad would execute a person. Four officers would fire weapons with live ammunition and one would fire a weapon with a blank round. The identity of the officers would also be shielded.

The bill will receive amendments before the committee takes a vote.