By: History.com Editors

1924

First execution by lethal gas

Published: July 21, 2010

Last Updated: January 24, 2025

The first execution by lethal gas in American history is carried out in Carson City, Nevada. The executed man was Gee Jon, a member of a Chinese gang who was convicted of murdering a rival gang member. Lethal gas was adopted by Nevada in 1921 as a more humane method of carrying out its death sentences, as opposed to the traditional techniques of execution by hanging, firing squad or electrocution.

During a lethal gas execution, the prisoner is sealed in an airtight chamber and either potassium cyanide or sodium cyanide is dropped into a pan of hydrochloric acid. This produces hydrocyanic gas, which destroys a human body’s ability to process blood hemoglobin. The prisoner falls unconscious within seconds and chokes to death, unless he or she holds his or her breath, in which case the prisoner often suffers violent convulsions for up to a minute before dying.

Lethal gas as a method of carrying out capital punishment was largely replaced by lethal injection in the late 20th century.

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Citation Information

Article title
First execution by lethal gas
Website Name
History
Date Accessed
March 28, 2025
Publisher
A&E Television Networks
Last Updated
January 24, 2025
Original Published Date
July 21, 2010

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