Which states have switched to alternative execution methods in 2025?
Executive summary
Several states changed laws or practices in 2025 to permit or prioritize alternative execution methods amid shortages and legal pressures on lethal injection; most-noted moves include Idaho making the firing squad its primary method (signed March 2025) and several states adopting or using nitrogen hypoxia or other non‑injection methods (Alabama, Louisiana, Arkansas, Mississippi noted in reporting) [1] [2] [3]. Coverage is uneven: some outlets focus on new statutes (Idaho, Arkansas, Florida), others on recent uses (South Carolina firing‑squad executions, Alabama nitrogen uses), and available sources do not provide a single, definitive list of every state that “switched” in 2025 [1] [2] [4].
1. Idaho’s legislative leap: firing squad becomes primary, not backup
Idaho’s 2025 legislation is the clearest example of a state formally switching methods: the Legislature passed and Governor Brad Little signed a bill making the firing squad the state’s primary execution method and relegating lethal injection to an alternative role — a reversal of prior law that had made the firing squad a backup only when drugs were unavailable [5] [1].
2. Nitrogen hypoxia’s spread: from experimentation to statute and practice
Reporting documents a wave of adoption and actual use of nitrogen hypoxia as an execution option. Alabama used nitrogen gas beginning in 2024 and continued into 2025; Death Penalty Information Center and other outlets report that Alabama, Louisiana and Mississippi — and Arkansas by statute in 2025 — have added or used nitrogen hypoxia as an execution method, with witness accounts noting anomalies and signs of distress in some executions [2] [6] [7]. Arkansas passed HB 1489 in March 2025 to add nitrogen gas to its statute, joining the growing list of states authorizing the method [2].
3. South Carolina: firing squad moves from option to real use
South Carolina conducted multiple firing‑squad executions in 2025; media and nonprofit coverage note Brad Sigmon’s execution in March as the first U.S. firing‑squad execution in 15 years and that the state used the method again in April, turning a rarely used statutory option into an active method [2] [4]. These events illustrate how statutory alternatives can become operational when lethal‑injection drugs are hard to obtain [3].
4. Florida, Arkansas and broader statutory shifts that open the door to many methods
Some 2025 state laws do not name a single alternative but broaden authority to “any method not deemed unconstitutional,” effectively allowing firing squads, hanging, nitrogen gas or other methods if courts permit. Florida’s new law was reported to allow a wide range of methods if injection drugs are unavailable, even though the bill text did not explicitly name them; Arkansas’ HB 1489 specifically added nitrogen gas [8] [2].
5. Why states are switching: drug shortages, costs and legal strategy
Multiple sources tie the shifts to prolonged shortages of lethal‑injection drugs, rising costs, and legal challenges to drug protocols. States have spent large sums on drugs that expire or are unusable, built expensive facilities for alternatives, and faced public and legal scrutiny after botched or controversial executions — factors that are driving legislatures to authorize alternative methods or prioritize them [3] [5].
6. Disagreement in framing and public reaction
Coverage shows competing views: proponents in legislatures argue alternatives restore the ability to carry out lawful sentences and reduce delays; critics call the changes “barbaric” and warn of cruel or botched executions, citing eyewitness reports of distress during nitrogen executions and the visceral nature of firing‑squad deaths [3] [2] [4]. Governors and advocates vary—North Carolina’s governor, for example, publicly opposed firing squads even when lawmakers considered related measures [3].
7. Limits of current reporting and what’s not established
Available sources provide clear evidence of Idaho’s 2025 statutory change and multiple states adopting nitrogen hypoxia or conducting firing‑squad executions, but they do not supply a single, authoritative list of every state that “switched” in 2025 nor a comprehensive timeline of enactments versus actual use; if you seek a complete, up‑to‑date inventory of statutory changes and executions through 2025, available sources do not mention a consolidated federal or nongovernmental roster covering every state for that year [1] [2] [3].
8. How to follow developments reliably
Track state legislative records (e.g., Idaho and Arkansas bills cited above), Death Penalty Information Center legislative roundups, and reputable state‑by‑state reporting (Stateline, major local papers) for confirmation of enactments versus actual use; those outlets provided the core reporting cited here about Idaho’s law, Arkansas’ HB 1489, Alabama and Louisiana’s nitrogen use, and South Carolina’s firing‑squad executions in 2025 [1] [2] [6] [4].