Condemned South Carolina killer chooses to be executed by firing squad

COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — Condemned South Carolina inmate Brad Sigmon has chosen to die next month by a firing squad. He would be the first U.S. inmate shot to death in an execution in 15 years.

Sigmon is scheduled to die March 7. On Friday, he became the first South Carolina inmate to choose the state’s new firing squad over lethal injection or the electric chair.

Only three inmates in the U.S. have been executed by firing squad since 1976. All were in Utah, with the last one taking place in 2010.

Sigmon will be strapped to a chair and have a hood placed over his head and a target placed over his heart in the death chamber. Three volunteers will fire at him through a small opening about 15 feet (4.6 meters) away.