Louisiana Executes Death Row Inmate with Nitrogen Gas, Sparking Debate
Louisiana carried out the execution of Jessie Hoffman on Tuesday, marking the first instance of nitrogen gas execution in the state’s history and only the fifth in the United States. The execution, the first in Louisiana in 15 years due to the state’s difficulty in acquiring lethal injection drugs, has ignited a renewed debate over the ethics and constitutionality of capital punishment.
Hoffman, convicted of the brutal rape and murder of 28-year-old Molly Elliott in 1996, was pronounced dead at 6:50 p.m. Gary Westcott, secretary of the Louisiana Department of Public Safety and Corrections, described the execution as "flawless."
Prior to his execution, Hoffman argued against the use of nitrogen gas, a method considered controversial and largely untested. He claimed it violated his religious freedom by preventing him from practicing his Buddhist meditative breathing. A federal judge initially halted the execution, citing concerns about potential pain and torture that could violate Hoffman’s constitutional rights. However, the U.S. 5th Circuit Court of Appeals overturned the ruling, and the U.S. Supreme Court ultimately declined to stop the execution in a narrow decision.
Before Hoffman, only Alabama had used nitrogen gas for executions, making history last year and conducting three more since then.
The details of Molly Elliott’s murder remain harrowing. On November 27, 1996, Elliott left her advertising firm in New Orleans and headed to the Sheraton hotel garage where she parked her car. Hoffman, then 18 and working at the garage, kidnapped her at gunpoint and forced her to withdraw money from an ATM. Prosecutors emphasized the terror Elliott experienced, visible on the ATM video. Hoffman then forced her to drive to a remote area where he raped her before shooting her in the head, execution-style, near a makeshift dock. Her body was found on Thanksgiving Day by her husband.
Hoffman’s attorney, Cecelia Kappel, acknowledged that Hoffman recognized the crime and expressed deep remorse.
Judge Shelly Dick’s initial decision to block the execution was based on concerns that nitrogen gas could cause "pain and terror," potentially violating the Eighth Amendment’s prohibition against cruel and unusual punishment. She cited accounts from Alabama executions that described suffering, including conscious terror, shaking, gasping, and other signs of distress. Witnesses reported inmates’ bodies writhing, convulsing, and struggling for life.
Alabama’s Attorney General Steve Marshall defended the method as "constitutional and effective," while Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill questioned the reliability of media witness accounts.
The Supreme Court’s decision to allow the execution to proceed was split, with the three liberal justices and Justice Neil Gorsuch dissenting. Gorsuch argued that the lower courts failed to adequately review Hoffman’s claim that the method interfered with his meditative breathing, violating his religious liberty. He emphasized that courts cannot dictate how a religion should be followed.
Molly Elliott’s husband, Andy Elliott, expressed a sense of indifference towards the death penalty versus life in prison without parole, stating that he favored the execution as a means to end the uncertainty. He acknowledged that Hoffman’s death would not bring closure, but it would allow them to put Molly’s brutal death in the past. He described Molly as a cherished person who missed out on motherhood, a promising career, and a fulfilling life.
The use of nitrogen gas comes as states struggle to obtain lethal injection drugs, leading them to explore alternative execution methods. Besides Alabama and Louisiana, Mississippi and Oklahoma also permit nitrogen gas executions. Arkansas recently passed a bill to allow it. Other states like Ohio and Nebraska have reintroduced similar legislation.
The case in South Carolina, also gained attention, where Brad Keith Sigmon was executed by firing squad, marking the first such execution in the U.S. since 2010.
The execution of Jessie Hoffman, while deemed "flawless" by state officials, has reignited the debate over capital punishment and the methods used to carry it out. The Supreme Court’s split decision, the concerns raised about pain and religious freedom, and the enduring grief of the victim’s family highlight the complexities and moral considerations surrounding capital punishment. As more states explore alternative execution methods, the debate is likely to intensify. The search for a humane and constitutional means of carrying out the death penalty remains a contentious issue. The family has expressed a life can never come to closure, and it is something that will always be carried and never healed.
