(INDIANAPOLIS) - A proposal to add the firing squad as an execution method in Indiana failed Wednesday in the House, falling just short of the votes needed to advance, according to the Indiana Capital Chronicle.
House Bill 1119 was rejected on a 48-47 vote, three votes shy of the 51 required in the 100-member chamber. Opposition came from both parties, with 19 Republicans and 28 Democrats voting against the measure. The bill would have allowed the Indiana Department of Correction to choose between lethal injection and a firing squad for carrying out death sentences.
Lawmakers voted a day earlier to remove nitrogen hypoxia from the bill, and additional amendments added mental health screening requirements for execution team members and revised rules governing media witnesses.
Bill author Rep. Jim Lucas, R-Seymour, argued the proposal was intended to address challenges in obtaining lethal injection drugs and to add another execution option within existing death penalty law. Opponents countered that the bill raised serious moral, legal and practical concerns, including the risk of wrongful convictions and the optics of expanding execution methods.
Despite Wednesday's vote, the legislation could be brought back for reconsideration before the House's legislative deadline on Monday. A separate Senate proposal authorizing firing squads stalled earlier after failing to receive a committee vote.