Two Oklahoma death row inmates slated to be executed through the use of lethal injection are pushing for a firing squad as an alternative.
Donald Grant and Gilbert Postelle, a pair of inmates in Oklahoma convicted of slayings, requested that U.S. District Judge Stephen Friot approve a temporary injunction to pause each of their executions and allow a trial over the constitutionality of the state’s three-shot lethal injection, according to the Associated Press.
“While it may be gruesome to look at, we all agree it will be quicker,” Jim Stronski, an attorney for one of the inmates, told the judge Monday.
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Lethal injections can result in painful or botched executions, and there have been shortages of the drugs used in the injections, which can cause delays.
“There’s a lot for me to get my mind around,” Friot said Monday, adding that he expects to give a decision by the end of the week.
A trial over the lethal injection is slated to begin before Friot on Feb. 28. Grant’s execution is scheduled for Jan. 27, while Postelle’s is scheduled for Feb. 17.
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Oklahoma is joined by Mississippi, South Carolina, and Utah in authorizing the option to be executed through the use of a firing squad, according to the Death Penalty Information Center. Oklahoma has not used firing squads for executions since becoming a state but allows for it if other methods are not available.
The Washington Examiner reached out to Stronski for a comment.
