Ohio AG David Yost addresses committee on execution by gas in Ohio

COLUMBUS, Ohio (WKBN) – An effort to get Ohio to return to carrying death penalty convictions in the form of executions continues in the legislature as committees are learning more about a proposal that would change how those executions are carried out.

Ohio Attorney General David Yost, a vocal proponent of the death penalty, addressed the Ohio House Judiciary Committee earlier this month in support of House Bill 36, which would permit the use of nitrogen hypoxia for executions.

There is a current moratorium on carrying out the death penalty in Ohio because of the state’s inability to get the drugs needed from pharmaceutical companies for lethal injection, and the only way to change the manner of death is through the legislature. Currently, efforts are underway to approve the use of nitrogen hypoxia.

Yost told the judicial committee on Oct. 1 that Ohio not being able to carry out the death penalty is a “dishonorable abdication of responsibility.” Ohio has not conducted an execution since July 2018, when Robert Van Hook was executed by lethal injection.

“An additional method of execution is necessary,” Yost told the committee.

Yost reminded committee members that the families of victims, as well as Ohioans who served as jurors and made the difficult decision to sentence a defendant to death, are counting on Ohio leaders to carry out the state’s capital-punishment laws.

Nine states currently allow lethal gas as a means of execution. Five of those – Alabama, Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Oklahoma – specify nitrogen hypoxia.

Earlier this year, President Donald Trump directed U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi to ensure that states with capital punishment have access to the drugs needed for lethal injection. Yost welcomed the move in a March 5 letter to Bondi, saying that “without the assistance of the federal government, Ohio’s situation is unlikely to change.”

Trumbull County Prosecutor Dennis Watkins has also been a vocal supporter of Ohio resuming death penalty executions, calling on lawmakers to approve nitrogen hypoxia. Watkins traveled to Columbus last year to give testimony on the issue, citing local, high-profile cases such as those of Danny Lee Hill, Stanley Adams and Sean Carter, among others.

Ohio House Bill 36 is currently in House Committee.