South Carolina Executes Mikal Mahdi by Firing Squad, Second Such Execution in Five Weeks

Mahdi, convicted of two 2004 murders, chose the firing squad over other methods as the state advances its renewed use of alternative execution practices.

Mikal Mahdi, 42, was executed by a three-person firing squad on April 11, 2025, at Broad River Correctional Institution in South Carolina.
This marked the second firing squad execution in the state within five weeks, following a 13-year pause in executions due to lethal injection drug shortages.
Mahdi was convicted for the 2004 murders of off-duty officer James Myers, whose body he burned after shooting him, and a convenience store clerk in North Carolina.
His final appeals, including clemency requests, were rejected by both the state and U.S. Supreme Courts earlier in the week.
Mahdi's defense highlighted his traumatic upbringing and prolonged solitary confinement as mitigating factors, but these arguments failed to prevent his execution.