Death by firing squad is still a thing in the United States. Brad Keith Sigmon, a 67-year-old convicted murderer, was executed by firing squad in South Carolina on Friday, marking the state’s first use of this method in modern history and the first such execution in the U.S. since 2010. Sigmon was sentenced to death for the brutal 2001 killings of his ex-girlfriend’s parents, Gladys and David Larke, who were beaten to death with a baseball bat in their home.
The execution took place at 6:08 p.m., with Sigmon strapped to a specially designed chair and a hood placed over his head. Three volunteer corrections officers stood 15 feet away, aiming loaded rifles at a target placed over Sigmon’s heart. Witnesses described the scene as intense and unsettling.
“Brad’s death was horrifying and violent,” said Gerald “Bo” King, Sigmon’s attorney and an execution witness. “It is unfathomable that, in 2025, South Carolina would execute one of its citizens in this bloody spectacle.”
Sigmon’s execution followed the U.S. Supreme Court’s denial of his final appeal and South Carolina Governor Henry McMaster’s refusal to grant clemency. Sigmon had admitted to the murders during his trial, telling the jury, “Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, I am guilty. I have no excuse for what I did. It’s my fault and I’m not trying to blame nobody else for it, and I’m sorry.”
In his final statement, Sigmon quoted four Bible verses, emphasizing his belief that “nowhere does God in the New Testament give man the authority to kill another man.” He added, “I want my closing statement to be one of love and a calling to my fellow Christians to help us end the death penalty. We are now under God’s grace and mercy.”
Sigmon’s ex-girlfriend, Rebecca Armstrong, whose parents were the victims of his crime, spoke to USA TODAY for the first time in 24 years. While she acknowledged the pain Sigmon caused her family, she expressed opposition to his execution, stating that death should be left in God’s hands.
The execution process was described in detail by witnesses. Sigmon was seated in a metal chair in a room shared with the state’s electric chair. The firing squad, positioned behind a wall with an opening for their rifles, fired simultaneously. A white target with a red bullseye marked Sigmon’s heart as the point of aim.
Associated Press reporter Jeffrey Collins, who witnessed the execution, noted, “It was instantaneous. When the shots were fired, it was very loud, it was very jarring… I think at that point everyone in the room flinched… There was only one place where I could see any damage, so that makes me think they (the bullets) were all clustered.” Collins also observed that Sigmon appeared to take a few breaths after the shots, with a red stain visible on his chest and small amounts of tissue seen in the wound.
Sigmon had chosen the firing squad over lethal injection or the electric chair, citing concerns about the potential for prolonged suffering with those methods. His attorney, King, explained, “He chose the firing squad knowing that three bullets would shatter his bones and destroy his heart. But that was the only choice he had.”
The execution has reignited debates over the death penalty and the methods used to carry it out. Critics argue that such practices are inhumane, while proponents maintain that they serve as justice for heinous crimes. As South Carolina resumes executions after a decade-long pause, the controversy surrounding Sigmon’s death highlights the ongoing ethical and moral questions surrounding capital punishment.