A South Carolina man convicted of murdering his ex-girlfriend’s parents was executed by firing squad on Friday, marking the first such execution in the United States since 2010.
Brad Sigmon, 67, was put to death at the Broad River Correctional Institution in Columbia, South Carolina. The execution was carried out by a three-person firing squad at 6:05 PM (2305 GMT), and Sigmon was pronounced dead three minutes later.
Journalists who witnessed the execution described Sigmon wearing a black jumpsuit with a small red bullseye over his heart. He was strapped into a chair, and a hood was placed over his head before the executioners fired their rifles from about 15 feet away.
WYFF News 4 reporter Anna Dobbins, who observed the execution, said all the shots were fired simultaneously.
“It was very fast,” she noted. “I saw a splash of blood when the bullets entered his body.”
Sigmon’s attorney, Gerald “Bo” King, shared a final statement from his client before the execution, in which Sigmon called for an end to the death penalty.
Sigmon had confessed to the 2001 murders of David and Gladys Larke and had appealed to the Supreme Court for a last-minute stay of execution, but it was denied. South Carolina Governor Henry McMaster also refused to grant clemency.
Under South Carolina law, Sigmon was given the choice between lethal injection, the electric chair, or the firing squad. His lawyer argued that none of the options were humane.
“The electric chair would burn and cook him alive,” King said, while lethal injection risked a prolonged, painful death.
Sigmon ultimately chose the firing squad, a method that has been used rarely in the U.S. since the Supreme Court reinstated the death penalty in 1976.
The last firing squad execution in the U.S. took place in Utah in 2010. That state also carried out similar executions in 1996 and 1977.
While lethal injection remains the most common method, some states have turned to alternative execution methods due to drug shortages and legal challenges. Alabama recently executed four inmates using nitrogen gas, a method condemned by UN experts as inhumane.
Currently, five states—South Carolina, Utah, Idaho, Mississippi, and Oklahoma—permit firing squad executions.
The death penalty remains a controversial issue in the U.S., with 23 states abolishing it and three others (California, Oregon, and Pennsylvania) imposing moratoriums. However, President Donald Trump has been a strong advocate for capital punishment and has called for its expanded use for severe crimes.
So far in 2025, there have been six executions in the U.S., following 25 last year.