Page:Russell Bucklew v. Anne L. Precythe, Director, Missouri Department of Corrections.pdf/52

14 statement that nitrogen “will be effective, simple to administer, easy to obtain and requires no complex medical procedures”); but cf. ante, at 21.

Presented with evidence such as Bucklew’s, I believe a State should take at least minimal steps to determine the feasibility of the proposed alternative. The responsible state official in this case, however, acknowledged that he “did not conduct research concerning the feasibility of lethal gas as a method of execution in Missouri.” Id., at 713; see also Record in No. 14–800 (WD Mo.), Doc. 182–6, p. 16 (different official acknowledging that, “to be candid, no, I did not go out and try to find answers to those questions”).

The majority sensibly recognizes that an inmate seeking to identify an alternative method of execution “is not limited to choosing among those presently authorized by a particular State’s law.” Ante, at 19. But the majority faults Bucklew for failing to provide guidance about the administration of nitrogen hypoxia down to the last detail. The majority believes that Bucklew failed to present evidence “on essential questions” such as whether the nitrogen should be administered “using a gas chamber, a tent, a hood, [or] a mask;” or “in what concentration (pure nitrogen or some mixture of gases)” it should be administered; or even how the State might “protec[t the execution team] against the risk of gas leaks.” Ante, at 21.

Perhaps Bucklew did not provide these details. But Glossip did not refer to any of these requirements; today’s majority invents them. And to insist upon them is to create what, in a case like this one, would amount to an insurmountable hurdle for prisoners like Bucklew. That hurdle, I fear, could permit States to execute even those who will endure the most serious pain and suffering, irrespective of how exceptional their case and irrespective of how thoroughly they prove it. I cannot reconcile the majority’s decision with a constitutional Amendment that