Overview

• Attorney General Dave Yost testified before the House Judiciary Committee in support of House Bill 36 to authorize nitrogen hypoxia as an alternative to lethal injection.
• Governor Mike DeWine issued new three-year reprieves for Antonio Franklin and James Trimble, moving their execution dates from 2026 to 2029 due to drug access problems.
• Ohio has not carried out an execution since July 2018, and lethal injection remains the only method currently permitted under state law.
• Backers cite five states that allow nitrogen hypoxia, while critics point to Alabama’s 2024 nitrogen execution that drew U.N. condemnation and witness reports of prolonged distress.
• A competing Republican-sponsored measure, House Bill 72, would abolish the death penalty and has received only one hearing so far.