A double murderer died by firing squad in South Carolina last week, more than two decades after bludgeoning his ex-girlfriend’s parents to death.
Brad Sigmon was 67-years-old and was given a choice of being executed by lethal injection, electrocution or firing squad.
He chose the latter option and three State employees killed him by firing specially designed bullets into his chest.
On Moncrieff, witness Jeffrey Collins of the Associated Press said executions were paused in South Carolina because they struggled to procure the drugs needed for lethal injections.
“In the mid-2010s, their supply of lethal injection drugs expired,” he said.
“The suppliers won’t sell States lethal injection drugs if their names are going to be public.
“So, it took a while for South Carolina to sort its way, being able to pass a law that would keep their names secret and on the same track, they also approved a firing squad to give another option to inmates.”
Execution methods
In his career as a journalist, Mr Collins has reported on 11 executions; nine of which were carried out by lethal injection, one by electrocution and just one by firing squad.
For most States, lethal injection is the preferred method of execution and Sigmon was the first US inmate to die by firing squad in several years.
“I would say the inmate’s probably 25 feet away from where I’m sitting, probably 20 feet away from the glass,” Mr Collins said.
“They’re sitting in a chair, they’re strapped in, they’re in a black prison jumpsuit and the prison official reads his last statement.
“There’s a hood placed over his head; after the hood’s placed over his head, the same prison official opens up a shade [curtain] where the shooters are.
“Then there’s a target over the inmate’s heart that was placed already by a doctor with a stethoscope.
“In this case, there’s about 90 seconds, maybe two minutes; there’s no warning, no countdown - they just fire.
“You heard the crack of a rifle, saw the target blow off and that was it.”
Brad Keith Sigmon was executed by firing squad tonight at 6:05 p.m. and declared dead by a physician at 6:08 p.m. Details: https://t.co/Sxktl47B6a
— S.C. Department of Corrections (@SCDCNews) March 8, 2025
Sigmon was sentenced to death after he was found guilty of killing his ex-girlfriend’s parents in 2001.
“At some point, he decided he was going to get her back,” Mr Collins said.
“The plan in his head was he would tie up her parents, kidnap her, take her away on a romantic weekend - he had packed stuff in his suitcase like lingerie and things like that.
“Then he was going to kill her and kill himself.”
After his ex-girlfriend's father threatened to get a gun, Sigmon bludgeoned him and his wife to death with a baseball bat.
A reformed man?
Sigmon's lawyer, Bo King, said during his years in prison, his client had been rehabilitated.
He had asked the Governor of South Carolina for a last minute stay of execution - a request that was declined.
"Brad is someone who, for his last meal, asked to get three buckets of original recipe Kentucky Fried Chicken so he could share with the guys that he's incarcerated with on death row," Mr King told WYFF-TV.
"With his last meal, he wanted to share something special with them.”
Sigmon’s last meal was fried chicken, green beans, mashed potatoes with gravy, biscuits, cheesecake and sweet tea.
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Main image: Brad Sigmon. Image by: SC Department of Corrections.
