Alabama executed inmate Carey Dale Grayson for the 1994 murder of a hitchhiker, making it the third execution in the United States to use nitrogen gas.
Grayson, 50, was pronounced dead at William C. Holman Correctional Facility in the state on Thursday at 6:33 p.m., following the application of the new procedure.
According to the Associated Press, Grayson swore at the jail warden and raised both middle fingers before being executed.
He told the warden, “For you, you need to f*** off,” according to AL.com.
The warden reportedly shut off the microphone when Grayson, wearing a gas mask, appeared to address state authorities in the witness room.
Grayson declined breakfast and lunch trays in favor of coffee and Mountain Dew, according to the Alabama Department of Corrections.
Grayson’s final supper included soft tacos, beef burritos, a tostada, chips and guacamole, and a Mountain Dew Blast from a neighborhood eatery.
Vicki DeBlieux’s journey to her mother’s house, and ultimately her life, were tragically cut short thirty years ago by Carey Grayson and three other men. “She sensed something was wrong, tried to flee, but was brutally tortured and murdered,” Alabama Governor Kay Ivey said in a statement.
“Even after her death, Mr. Grayson’s actions against Ms. DeBlieux were atrocious, incomprehensible, without regard for human life, and just unfathomably cruel. Ms. DeBlieux’s death and dismemberment were far worse than an execution by nitrogen hypoxia. I hope for her loved ones that they can continue to find closure and healing.
Grayson was one of four adolescents convicted of killing Vickie Deblieux, 37, while she was traveling in Alabama on her way to her mother’s home in Louisiana.
The execution occurred hours after the US Supreme Court rejected a request for a stay. Grayson’s lawyers had argued that the new form of execution needed to be studied further before being employed again.
Grayson became the 22nd convict executed in the United States this year, Alabama’s sixth in 2024, and the third in just two months, according to the Montgomery Advertiser.
Deblieux was let off by a friend in Chattanooga near Interstate 59 on February 21, 1994, and began hitchhiking to continue her journey southwest, according to USA TODAY.
At the same time, Grayson and three other youths were driving near Birmingham, Alabama, when they noticed Deblieux by the side of the road looking for a ride.
Deblieux was approached by the group and offered to join them on their ride. They then proceeded to a neighboring rural area called Bald Mountain, where they allegedly justified their stop by telling Deblieux they were swapping automobiles, and began attacking her.
The kids battered and kicked her outside the car before Grayson and another youngster killed her by stepping on her neck.
The group tossed her body off a cliff and then returned to mutilate it. They slashed her body at least 180 times, severed her fingers, and removed a part of her lungs, according to court filings.
In Alabama, offenders can die by nitrogen hypoxia, lethal injection, or electrocution, with Grayson choosing the former. Alabama utilized the controversial procedure for the first time this year, when Kenneth Eugene Smith was killed in January.
Smith’s unorthodox method of execution aroused international outrage, including a protest from the Vatican.
Grayson is one of perhaps 30 inmates on Alabama’s death row who have chosen to die from nitrogen hypoxia. During the execution, the condemned individual breathes pure nitrogen through a mask, displacing oxygen from their system. Proponents claim it is an instant and painless death, while opponents argue it is untested and amounts to torture.
During Smith’s execution, he reportedly writhed and convulsed on a gurney for at least four minutes before losing consciousness “within seconds,” as the state had expected.
Despite these concerns, the state’s Department of Corrections Commissioner, John Hamm, praised the execution as “textbook.”