Richard Moore, a 59-year-old Black man on death row in South Carolina, has been given a stark choice regarding his impending execution.
Convicted for the 1999 murder of store clerk James Mahoney, Moore must decide between three methods of execution: firing squad, electric chair, or lethal injection.
However, due to a scarcity of the necessary drugs, lethal injection is currently not an option.
Moore's situation is particularly notable as it highlights issues of racial bias and the complexities surrounding capital punishment.
His conviction was handed down by a jury that included no African American members, a point his lawyers emphasize as they appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court to halt the execution.
They argue that Moore, who was unarmed when he entered the store and only defended himself after obtaining a weapon during the altercation, should not face the death penalty under these circumstances.
The state of South Carolina has not carried out an execution in 13 years, primarily due to difficulties in obtaining lethal injection drugs. If Moore does not make a decision by October 18, he will be electrocuted by default. This would mark only the second execution in the state since the hiatus ended.
Prison officials have confirmed that the state's electric chair, built in 1912, is operational, and a firing squad has been trained and equipped.
"The firing squad, allowed by a 2021 law, has the guns, ammunition, and training it needs," stated South Carolina Corrections Director Bryan Stirling.
Moore plans to seek clemency from Governor Henry McMaster, although historically, no governor in the modern era of the death penalty in South Carolina has granted such mercy. Moore has maintained a clean prison record and has offered to work towards rehabilitating other inmates if his sentence is commuted to life without parole.
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