Thursday, March 18, 2004

Glad I Don't Have the Blindfold and Cigarette Contract in Utah

The state of Utah, in a slight nod to the 21st Century, has finally abolished the firing squad as a means of execution. Condemned criminals in Utah now will be forced to endure lethal injection. The firing squad in Utah, of course, was made famous by Gary Gilmore, the first person executed after the Supreme Court reauthorized the death penalty in the 1970s. Five shooters made up the squad, but one man only fired blanks. The shooters didn't know who had the blank, presumably to ensure that nobody would know who fired the fatal shot(s). Which says all you need to know about capital punishment.

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