# Death by Firing Squad - More Humane? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [October 19, 2010, 7:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/death-by-firing-squad-more-humane/557685 "2010-10-19T19:12:17Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![SanDiegoTim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/85e7bf/32.png) [@SanDiegoTim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SanDiegoTim)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2010, 7:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/death-by-firing-squad-more-humane/557685/1 "2010-10-19T19:12:17Z")
Ever wonder if someone executed by a firing squad actually hears the the round firing? Assuming the round is moving at a fairly-typical 2,700 FPS and shooter hits his target “between the eyes,” I tend to think not. The next question is whether he/she feels any pain. I suspect no one knows for sure, but again I think not. If what I suspect is true, and albeit a bit more gruesome, I would think execution by firing squad is more humane than other forms of execution. Certainly better than hanging or electrocution. Not sure about injection. ---
**Author:** ![Jimmy\_Chitwood](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f475e1/32.png) [@Jimmy\_Chitwood](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jimmy_Chitwood)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2010, 7:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/death-by-firing-squad-more-humane/557685/2 "2010-10-19T19:21:34Z")
Firing squads don’t aim for the head, though; they aim for the heart. A man was executed just this year [by firing squad](http://www.nytimes.com/2010/06/19/us/19death.html) in Utah, although it’s been abandoned for new cases. A significant chunk of the philosophy behind execution methods furthers the interests of people other than the condemned, of course. Lots of criminals would choose methods of death that were immediate and devastating rather than the “peaceful” sort, if they had the opportunity. It’s society’s interest in considering _itself_ humane that is protected by something like lethal injection, not the actual experience of the person being killed. ---
**Author:** ![SanDiegoTim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/85e7bf/32.png) [@SanDiegoTim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SanDiegoTim)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2010, 7:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/death-by-firing-squad-more-humane/557685/3 "2010-10-19T19:29:24Z")
I presumed “head shots” were not typical, but if used I’d think death would become, for all intents and purposes, instantaneous. Of course, a round impacting the heart wouldn’t delay things too much, but maybe long enough for the brain to recognize pain. ---
**Author:** ![pericynthion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/85e7bf/32.png) [@pericynthion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pericynthion)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2010, 8:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/death-by-firing-squad-more-humane/557685/4 "2010-10-19T20:07:00Z")
It’s not just about physical pain, there’s also the psychological effect on the condemned of having three people pointing guns at her. Might be more or less scary than being hooked up to an IV or sat in a gas chamber. ---
**Author:** ![AClockworkMelon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aclockworkmelon/32/10803_2.png) [@AClockworkMelon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AClockworkMelon)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2010, 8:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/death-by-firing-squad-more-humane/557685/5 "2010-10-19T20:34:10Z")
> [@pericynthion](#): > > It’s not just about physical pain, there’s also the psychological effect on the condemned of having three people pointing guns at her. Might be more or less scary than being hooked up to an IV or sat in a gas chamber. All three would be terrifying. But I can’t even imagine watching liquid go through an IV and up into my arms and then slowly drifting to sleep, knowing that that’s me dying. I’d rather be shot than injected. Gassing would be even worse. ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2010, 9:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/death-by-firing-squad-more-humane/557685/6 "2010-10-19T21:05:53Z")
Plus you get to die on your feet. Historically speaking, it’s always been considered more dignified to be executed by a weapon of some sort than by a specialized device. That’s why, in medieval Europe, noblemen died by the axe, while commoners hung. ---
**Author:** ![villa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/bc79bd/32.png) [@villa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/villa)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2010, 9:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/death-by-firing-squad-more-humane/557685/7 "2010-10-19T21:17:34Z")
Do U.S. firing squads use the one blank technique the British Army used so those involved in a firing squad could tell themselves they couldn’t be sure if they had killed someone? ---
**Author:** ![engineer\_comp\_geek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/engineer_comp_geek/32/504_2.png) [@engineer\_comp\_geek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/engineer_comp_geek)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2010, 9:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/death-by-firing-squad-more-humane/557685/8 "2010-10-19T21:28:41Z")
> [@villa](#): > > Do U.S. firing squads use the one blank technique the British Army used so those involved in a firing squad could tell themselves they couldn’t be sure if they had killed someone? Yes. They also use special blank cartridges that supposedly give a kick similar to a real bullet. Normal blanks don’t have as much recoil, and an experienced shooter will know if he’s fired a blank or a live round. ---
**Author:** ![friedo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/8edcca/32.png) [@friedo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/friedo)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2010, 9:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/death-by-firing-squad-more-humane/557685/9 "2010-10-19T21:47:17Z")
> [@Alessan](#): > > Plus you get to die on your feet. The recent guy in Utah was tied to a chair when he was shot. Seems rather unsporting. ---
**Author:** ![Wallenstein](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/b5a626/32.png) [@Wallenstein](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wallenstein)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2010, 10:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/death-by-firing-squad-more-humane/557685/10 "2010-10-19T22:38:40Z")
> [@friedo](#): > > The recent guy in Utah was tied to a chair when he was shot. Seems rather unsporting. Better to give him a moose hat and 5 mins head-start in the woods? 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![SanDiegoTim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/85e7bf/32.png) [@SanDiegoTim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SanDiegoTim)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2010, 11:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/death-by-firing-squad-more-humane/557685/11 "2010-10-19T23:17:53Z")
> [@Wallenstein](#): > > Better to give him a moose hat and 5 mins head-start in the woods? 🙂 I seem to recall a short story entitled “The Most Dangerous Game.” ---
**Author:** ![Rhythmdvl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/85f322/32.png) [@Rhythmdvl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rhythmdvl)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2010, 11:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/death-by-firing-squad-more-humane/557685/12 "2010-10-19T23:39:52Z")
> [@villa](#): > > Do U.S. firing squads use the one blank technique the British Army used so those involved in a firing squad could tell themselves they couldn’t be sure if they had killed someone? The practice in the US began some time in the mid-eighties in, of all places, New Jersey. It seems that shooting people through the heart made it very difficult for the shooter to return to society, which had come to “blame” the person for carrying out a perfectly lawful and just act. So despite having done little more than just playing their part in society’s game, the lonely shooters found that they had given love a bad name. ---
**Author:** ![Aji\_de\_Gallina](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aji_de_gallina/32/260_2.png) [@Aji\_de\_Gallina](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aji_de_Gallina)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2010, 11:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/death-by-firing-squad-more-humane/557685/13 "2010-10-19T23:56:19Z")
> [@Alessan](#): > > Plus you get to die on your feet. > > Historically speaking, it’s always been considered more dignified to be executed by a weapon of some sort than by a specialized device. That’s why, in medieval Europe, noblemen died by the axe, while commoners hung. As far as I know (at least in England) comoner dies by axe and noblemen by sword. ---
**Author:** ![KarlGauss](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/karlgauss/32/3713_2.png) [@KarlGauss](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KarlGauss)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2010, 12:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/death-by-firing-squad-more-humane/557685/14 "2010-10-20T00:12:55Z")
> [@Jimmy\_Chitwood](#): > > Firing squads don’t aim for the head, though; they aim for the heart. This is not always the case. In WWII, a standard German technique was two shooters aiming for the head and two for the heart. I believe I read this in the almost unreadable [Ordinary Men](http://www.amazon.com/Ordinary-Men-Reserve-Battalion-Solution/dp/0060995068/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1287533385&sr=1-1) (because it describes actual events and is unfortunately not just some depressing work of fiction). ---
**Author:** ![Baron\_Greenback](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/baron_greenback/32/48_2.png) [@Baron\_Greenback](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baron_Greenback)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2010, 1:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/death-by-firing-squad-more-humane/557685/15 "2010-10-20T01:49:20Z")
> [@Aji\_de\_Gallina](#): > > As far as I know (at least in England) comoner dies by axe and noblemen by sword. Charles I was beheaded with an axe, at least. ---
**Author:** ![Ludovic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ab992/32.png) [@Ludovic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludovic)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2010, 1:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/death-by-firing-squad-more-humane/557685/16 "2010-10-20T01:51:00Z")
> [@Rhythmdvl](#): > > The practice in the US began some time in the mid-eighties in, of all places, New Jersey. It seems that shooting people through the heart made it very difficult for the shooter to return to society, which had come to “blame” the person for carrying out a perfectly lawful and just act. So despite having done little more than just playing their part in society’s game, the lonely shooters found that they had given love a bad name. But they only get executed if they’re wanted, dead or alive. ---
**Author:** ![Declan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ecae2f/32.png) [@Declan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Declan)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2010, 5:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/death-by-firing-squad-more-humane/557685/17 "2010-10-20T05:12:56Z")
> [@Ludovic](#): > > But they only get executed if they’re wanted, dead or alive. Well they could go out in a blaze of glory Declan ---
**Author:** ![Koxinga](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/4af34b/32.png) [@Koxinga](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Koxinga)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2010, 5:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/death-by-firing-squad-more-humane/557685/18 "2010-10-20T05:37:37Z")
> [@Declan](#): > > Well they could go out in a blaze of glory > > Declan You live for the fight when it’s all that you’ve got ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2010, 5:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/death-by-firing-squad-more-humane/557685/19 "2010-10-20T05:59:11Z")
Until then, you’re just livin’ on a prayer. ---
**Author:** ![Dereknocue67](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/6de8d8/32.png) [@Dereknocue67](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dereknocue67)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2010, 9:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/death-by-firing-squad-more-humane/557685/20 "2010-10-20T09:08:39Z")
I’ve always wondered why in our society, when we put our animals to death we seem to strive to be humane, yet when we execute a human, we seem to be animals. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/death-by-firing-squad-more-humane/557685.md?page=2)