Firing squad and Electrocution: US Justice Department approves more execution methods

The US Justice Department has fast-forwarded the process to introduce new options for federal death penalties as they seek to expedite scheduled executions before the outgoing US President Donald Trump’s administration is replaced by that of president-elect Joe Biden’s. These changes include new options for executions such as electrocution and death by firing squad or poison gas. As per media reports, the approved amendment to the ‘Manner of Federal Executions’ will give the federal prosecutors with a wide range of options to execute the inmates and avoid delays if the state in which the prisoner was sentenced does not provide other alternatives. 

The expansion of execution policies is just one of the other three dozen changes that Trump administration is pushing before his term ends on January 21, 2021, that is the Inauguration Day. The rule was given a repent light by US Attorney General William Barr and the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs. If approved, the amendment can be published in the Federal Register as early as December 4 and reportedly come into effect in 30 days. 

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Biden campaigned to abolish death penalty

However, despite the Trump administration seeking to expedite the process, the rule of expanding execution rules is headed to be unsuccessful since President-elect Joe Biden had campaigned to abolish the federal death penalities. As per the CNN report, four out of five inmates who are scheduled for execution have their manner selected, that is lethal injection. Moreover, the US Justice Department has not mentioned why they seek to introduce the new rule. 

The proposed amendment, calling for alternative ways to execute the inmates facing the death penalty, was published back in August. It reportedly also says that if the state where the crime took place does not permit death sentences or execution with lethal injection, the judge can designate another state with those laws and utilise their facilities to carry out the death penalty. However, a Justice Department official was quoted by the media outlet saying that the federal government will “never” execute an inmate by firing squad or electrocution unless the state has authorised the methods.

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