GREENVILLE, S.C. — Brad Sigmon, a South Carolina man convicted of brutally murdering two people in 2001, is scheduled to be executed this Friday, marking the first execution by firing squad in the United States in over a decade and a half. The South Carolina Supreme Court rejected Sigmon’s latest appeal to delay the execution, clearing the way for the state to carry out the sentence.
Sigmon was found guilty of killing his ex-girlfriend’s parents, David and Gladys Larke, in their Greenville County home more than two decades ago. Prosecutors stated that Sigmon, armed with a baseball bat, bludgeoned the couple to death in a fit of rage after his former partner ended their relationship. Following his conviction, Sigmon was sentenced to death, a penalty that has faced numerous legal challenges and delays in the years since.
The decision to proceed with a firing squad execution comes after South Carolina lawmakers amended state law in 2021 to allow the method as an alternative to lethal injection, amid ongoing difficulties in obtaining the necessary drugs for the latter. The last execution by firing squad in the U.S. occurred in 2010 in Utah, when Ronnie Lee Gardner was put to death for a 1985 murder. Sigmon’s case will mark the first use of this method in South Carolina’s history and the first nationwide in 15 years.
Sigmon’s legal team had sought to postpone the execution, arguing that additional time was needed to review the case and explore potential appeals. However, the state Supreme Court, in a unanimous decision issued earlier this week, denied the request, stating that all legal avenues had been exhausted. “The court has carefully considered the defendant’s arguments and finds no basis for further delay,” the ruling read.
The scheduled execution has reignited debates over capital punishment in South Carolina and beyond, with opponents decrying the use of the firing squad as a barbaric relic of the past, while supporters argue it ensures justice for victims’ families. The Larke family has remained largely silent in recent years but previously expressed support for Sigmon’s death sentence during trial proceedings.
As the execution date approaches, preparations are underway at the state’s Broad River Correctional Institution, where a firing squad team has been trained to carry out the procedure. Sigmon, now 54, has been on death row for more than two decades, his fate sealed barring any last-minute intervention by the governor or federal courts.
Friday’s execution, set to occur on March 7, 2025, will be closely watched as a significant moment in the evolving landscape of capital punishment in the United States.
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