On March 7, 2025, Brad Sigmon, a death row inmate convicted of a double murder, was executed by firing squad in South Carolina—a method not used in the state for 15 years and only the fourth such execution in the United States since capital punishment resumed in 1976. Sigmon’s execution marks a rare and somber moment in the nation’s penal history, drawing attention both to the evolving methods of execution and the ongoing debates regarding capital punishment in America.

On the day of his execution, Sigmon was escorted into the death chamber at the Broad River Correctional Institution in Columbia, South Carolina. The facility’s procedures for a firing squad execution are stringent and highly structured. Sigmon was first hooded and dressed in a standard-issue black jumpsuit. A target was affixed over his heart—a detail that underscores the clinical precision of the process.

In accordance with South Carolina’s execution protocols, Sigmon was securely strapped into a metal chair that rested upon a catch basin designed to contain bodily fluids, a measure intended to ensure both safety and procedural order. This setup, while efficient from an administrative standpoint, also served as a stark reminder of the finality of the state’s decision and the mechanistic nature of capital punishment.

Sigmon’s Final Statement