MONTGOMERY, Ala. — Alabama has announced its fourth execution using nitrogen gas, prompting ongoing critiques regarding the need for further evaluation of this execution method.
On Tuesday, Governor Kay Ivey proclaimed that Demetrius Terrence Frazier, aged 52, is set to be executed on February 6. This marks the state’s first scheduled execution for the year 2025.
Frazier was found guilty of murdering Pauline Brown during a robbery at her Birmingham apartment in 1991. Prosecutors indicated that while in custody in Detroit for an unrelated matter, Frazier confessed to the crime, admitting he raped and shot Brown after stealing approximately $80 from her purse. A jury recommended a death sentence with a vote of 10-2, leading to Frazier’s subsequent sentencing by the judge.
Last year, Alabama became the first state to utilize nitrogen gas for an execution, conducting three executions with this method. The process involves placing a mask over the individual’s face, substituting normal air with pure nitrogen, which ultimately leads to death by asphyxiation.
While the state asserts that this new method ensures a quick death, detractors argue that it has not lived up to expectations.
Frazier’s legal team is currently pursuing a federal lawsuit attempting to prevent the execution unless the state amends its procedures. They contend that nitrogen gas causes “conscious suffocation” and that previous executions did not achieve the quick onset of unconsciousness followed by death.
“Conscious suffocation violates the Eighth Amendment’s ban on cruel and unusual punishment as it introduces fear and suffering,” Frazier’s lawyers stated in a court document filed in November. Witness accounts, including those from media representatives, highlighted that executed individuals exhibited shaking on the gurney for initial moments, followed by what seemed like several minutes of strained breathing with significant pauses.
The state maintains that these movements are involuntary and has requested a federal judge to dismiss the lawsuit. They argue that Alabama has successfully performed three executions utilizing this method and noted that Frazier had previously opted for nitrogen gas as his execution method.
“Officials from the Alabama Department of Corrections disagree with Frazier’s assertion that other inmates executed via nitrogen hypoxia experienced ‘terror and pain,’” the state’s lawyers commented in a court filing dated Christmas Eve.
Lethal injection continues to be the primary method of execution in Alabama. In 2018, Alabama became the third state to sanction the use of nitrogen gas for executions. The state offered inmates a brief opportunity to choose their preferred method, and Frazier, alongside other inmates, selected nitrogen gas. However, at that time, the procedures for employing nitrogen gas in executions were not established.

This report has been updated to clarify that the scheduled date for the execution is February 6, not February 7, with the execution window closing at 6 a.m. on February 7.