Arizona executed 53-year-old Aaron Gunches by lethal injection on Wednesday. It was the state’s first execution since 2022.
Gunches, who abandoned legal efforts to stop his execution, was convicted of killing Ted Price, his girlfriend’s ex-husband, in 2002.
Attorney General Kris Mayes stated that justice was served for Price’s family. The execution took place at a state prison in Florence.
Media witnesses described Gunches lying on a gurney, with his arms and legs restrained before the procedure began.
When asked for final words, he shook his head to decline.
Execution process detailed
After intravenous lines were inserted, Gunches took deep breaths as the drugs took effect.
He soon lost consciousness, and his chest stopped moving minutes later.
The Arizona Department of Corrections confirmed he was pronounced dead at 10:33 a.m. local time.
Officials stated that the execution proceeded smoothly without complications.
Arizona halted executions after previous lethal injection issues, conducting a review before resuming capital punishment.
Other executions continue
One day earlier, Louisiana executed 46-year-old Jessie Hoffman using nitrogen gas for the 1996 murder of Molly Elliott.
Hoffman’s execution was Louisiana’s first in 15 years and only the fifth nitrogen gas execution in U.S. history.
Alabama is the only other state to use this method, where nitrogen gas causes death by suffocation.
Hoffman’s lawyers challenged the method, calling it unconstitutional under the Eighth Amendment’s ban on cruel punishment.
Louisiana’s attorney general announced that at least four more executions will take place this year.
More executions scheduled
The next execution in the U.S. is planned for March 20 in Oklahoma.
According to the Death Penalty Information Center, 11 executions remain scheduled for 2025.
Lethal injection remains the most common method, though some states are exploring alternatives.
Debates over execution methods and their legality continue to shape the national discussion on capital punishment.
