Richard Bernard Moore, 57, is also the first state detainee to face the choice of execution method, after a law came into force last year that makes electric shock the default and gives inmates the option to treat three prison staff with rifles. .
Moore spent more than two decades in death after being convicted of the 1999 murder of convenience store employee James Mahoney in Spartanburg.  If executed as scheduled on April 29, he would be the first person to be killed in the state since 2011 and the fourth in the country to be shot dead in nearly half a century.
The new law was triggered by a decade-long break in which correctional workers attributed the inability to supply the drugs needed to carry out lethal injections.
In a written statement, Moore said he did not admit that any method was legal or constitutional, but that he was more strongly opposed to electric shock death and chose only the executive branch because he had to make a choice.
“I believe this election is forcing me to choose between two unconstitutional methods of execution and I do not intend to give up any provocations for electric shock or shooting by holding elections,” Moore said in a statement.
Moore’s lawyers have asked the state Supreme Court to delay his death, while another court is judging whether any of the available methods are harsh and unusual punishment.  Lawyers argue that prison officials are not trying hard enough to get the lethal injectable drugs, instead forcing detainees to choose between two more barbaric methods.
His lawyers are also asking the state Supreme Court to delay the execution so that the US Supreme Court can review whether his death sentence was a disproportionate sentence compared to similar crimes.  State judges rejected a similar appeal last week.
South Carolina is one of eight states that still use the electric chair and one of four that allow a shooting squad, according to the Washington-based nonprofit Death Penalty Information Center.
Only three executions in the United States have taken place since 1976, according to the nonprofit.  Moore’s would be the first since Ronnie Lee Gardner was executed in 2010 by a five-man executive squad in Utah.
The South Carolina Correctional Facility said last month that it had completed the development of executive execution protocols and completed $ 53,600 renovations to the Columbia death chamber by installing a metal pedestal with a 15-foot-tall pedestal (4.6 meters) away.  In the event of an execution, three volunteer prison workers will train their rifles in the heart of the convicted prisoner.
Moore is one of 35 men sentenced to death in South Carolina.  The state had scheduled a final execution for Moore in 2020, which was later delayed after prison officials said they could not receive lethal injectable drugs.
During Moore’s trial in 2001, prosecutors said Moore entered the store looking for money to support his cocaine addiction and got into an argument with Mahoney, who pulled a pistol that Moore wrestled with.
Mahoney pulled a second gun and a skirmish ensued.  Mahoney shot Moore in the arm and Moore shot Mahoney in the chest.  Prosecutors said Moore left a trail of blood in the store as he searched for cash, passing Mahoney twice.
At the time, Moore claimed he was acting in self-defense after Mahoney pulled out his first weapon.
Moore’s supporters have argued that his crime does not reach the level of the death penalty.  Appeals attorneys told him that because Moore did not bring a gun to the store, he could not have intended to kill anyone when he entered.
The last person to be executed in South Carolina was Jeffrey Motts, who was sentenced to death for strangling a relative while serving a life sentence for another murder.
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Liu is a member of the Associated Press / Report for America Statehouse News Initiative.  Report for America is a non-profit national service program that places reporters in local newsrooms to cover hidden issues.

title: “S. Carolina Death Row Inmate Picks Firing Squad Over Electric Chair " ShowToc: true date: “2022-12-12” author: “Ricky Baker”

COLOMBIA, SC (AP) – A South Carolina inmate scheduled to be the first man to be executed in the state in more than a decade has been sentenced to death by firing squad rather than in an electric chair later this month, court documents show. filed on Friday.
Richard Bernard Moore, 57, is also the first state detainee to face the choice of execution method, after a law came into force last year that makes electric shock the default and gives inmates the option to treat three prison staff with rifles. .
Moore spent more than two decades in death after being convicted of the 1999 murder of convenience store employee James Mahoney in Spartanburg.  If executed as scheduled on April 29, he would be the first person to be killed in the state since 2011 and the fourth in the country to be shot dead in nearly half a century.
Only three executions in the United States have taken place since 1976, according to the Washington-based nonprofit Death Penalty Information Center.  Moore’s would be the first since Ronnie Lee Gardner was executed in 2010 by a five-man executive squad in Utah.
South Carolina is one of eight states that still use the electric chair and one of four that allow a range of shots, according to the center.
In a written statement, Moore said he did not admit that any method was legal or constitutional, but strongly opposed death by electric shock and chose only the executive branch because he had to make a choice.
“I believe this election is forcing me to choose between two unconstitutional methods of execution and I do not intend to give up any provocations for electric shock or shooting by holding elections,” Moore said in a statement.
The state’s new law stems from a 10-year suspension of executions, which correctional officials attribute to the inability to supply the drugs needed to carry out lethal injections.
Moore’s lawyers have asked the state Supreme Court to delay his death, while another court is judging whether any of the available methods are harsh and unusual punishment.  Lawyers argue that prison officials are not trying hard enough to get the lethal injectable drugs, instead forcing detainees to choose between two more barbaric methods.
His lawyers are also asking the state Supreme Court to delay the execution so that the US Supreme Court can review whether his death sentence was a disproportionate sentence compared to similar crimes.  State judges rejected a similar appeal last week.
The South Carolina Correctional Facility said last month that it had completed the development of executive execution protocols and completed $ 53,600 renovations to the Columbia death chamber by installing a metal pedestal with a 15-foot-tall pedestal (4.6 meters) away.  In the event of an execution, three volunteer prison workers will train their rifles in the heart of the convicted prisoner.
Moore is one of 35 men sentenced to death in South Carolina.  The state had scheduled a final execution for Moore in 2020, which was later delayed after prison officials said they could not receive lethal injectable drugs.
Director of Corrections Brian Sterling reiterated in an affidavit last week that the service is still unable to procure the drugs because the manufacturers and pharmacies contacted by the state refused to help.
During Moore’s trial in 2001, prosecutors said Moore entered the store looking for money to support his cocaine addiction and got into an argument with Mahoney, who pulled a pistol that Moore wrestled with.
Mahoney pulled a second gun and a skirmish ensued.  Mahoney shot Moore in the arm and Moore shot Mahoney in the chest.  Prosecutors said Moore left a trail of blood in the store as he searched for cash, passing Mahoney twice.
At the time, Moore claimed he was acting in self-defense after Mahoney pulled out his first weapon.
Moore’s supporters have argued that his crime does not reach the level of the death penalty.  Appeals attorneys told him that because Moore did not bring a gun to the store, he could not have intended to kill anyone when he entered.
The last person to be executed in South Carolina was Jeffrey Motts, who was sentenced to death for strangling a relative while serving a life sentence for another murder.