Lawyers representing a South Carolina death row inmate who was executed by firing squad on April 11 claim that the state mishandled the sentence, causing Mikal Mahdi to endure a longer and more painful death than intended.
42-year-old Mikal Mahdi was shot three times in the heart by trained volunteers. However, it took the prisoner four minutes to succumb to his injuries.
A recent autopsy has revealed that Mahdi suffered for longer than the 10-15 seconds expected by the court that ordered his death. A photograph of Mahdi’s torso showed only two distinct wounds when he was meant to be shot with three bullets.
This means that all three volunteer marksmen failed to hit their target, with one missing the inmate’s centre of mass entirely. The bullets struck Mahdi’s pancreas, liver, and lower lung, largely missing his heart.
Inmates facing the firing squad have their heads covered in black fabric and a large red target on their chests, reports the MirrorUS.
The pathologist who performed the autopsy for the state, Dr. Bradley Marcus, reported two roughly half-inch gunshot wounds on Mahdi’s chest. He suggested that three shots might have been fired, stating: “It is believed that gunshot wound labeled (A) represents two gunshot wound pathways.”
However, Dr. Jonathan Arden, a pathologist hired by Mahdi’s lawyers, submitted to the court that it would be “extraordinarily uncommon” for both bullets to have entered through the same hole. He also noted Dr. Marcus’ surprise at the finding.
“The shooters missed the intended target area and the evidence indicates that he was struck by only two bullets, not the prescribed three. Consequently, the nature of the internal injuries from the gunshot wounds resulted in a more prolonged death process,” stated Arden.
Mahdi’s legal team posed several unanswered questions to the court: “Among the questions that remain: did one member of the execution team miss Mr Mahdi entirely? Did they not fire at all? How did the two who did shoot Mr Mahdi miss his heart? Did they flinch or miss because of inadequate training? Or was the target on Mr. Mahdi’s chest misplaced? The current record provides no answers,”
Witnesses recounted the chilling moments following the execution, describing their shock as they heard Mahdi cry out and groan. Associated Press reporter Jeffrey Collins, who was present during the execution, said: “Mahdi had a grown. I won’t call it a scream but it like a groan or some indication of pain immediately after he was shot. You could see a number of shallow breaths that happened after that,”.
Mahdi, 42, chose to die by three bullets to the heart instead of lethal injection or the electric chair. On March 7, Brad Sigmon was executed in the first US firing squad death in 15 years and only the fourth since 1976.
The others all occurred in Utah.
Mahdi, 42, was handed the death penalty for the 2004 murder of 56-year-old Capt. James Myers of the Orangeburg Public Safety Department. Myers was fatally shot after finding Mahdi hiding in a shed on his property.
Mahdi then set the officer’s body ablaze. Three days prior, Mahdi had also killed a convenience store clerk, to which he pleaded guilty.
Mahdi’s last appeal was rejected by the South Carolina Supreme Court, and his legal team’s plea for clemency was not approved by Governor Henry McMaster, who has never granted a clemency petition.