Ronnie Lee Gardner - Death By Firing Squad

Ronnie Lee Gardner, 49, is going to recieve a death sentence by way of a firing squad. Only a handful of states actually practice this type of death sentence, Utah being one of them which is where Gardner will be executed. I knew Utah was a state that still used this method having lived there for most of my life before moving away a few years ago, it is still interesting to hear that it is going to actually be used.

Gardner who is charged with multiple murders stemming from 1985 when he went on a shooting rampage through Salt Lake City, Utah. April 2nd as he entered a courthouse he grabbed a gun that was left by an accomplice and shot and killed an attorney and wounded a guard but not before taking a round into his lung. He was to be in court over a robbery and murder charge a year before. He recieved the death penalty in November of 1985.

The interesting thing is that he has attempted to appeal the death sentence multiple times, almost out of a fear of sorts, but a death sentence handed out by firing squad has to be requested or performed only if lethal injection is seen as unfit. Really interesting read though.