“Parable of the Banquet” Death Row: Jeff Hood & Bart Johnson The Rev. Dr. Jeff Hood, Death Row Spiritual Advisor Bart Johnson, Prisoner on Alabama’s Death Row Luke 14:16-24 Jesus told a story. The story was not just a story. Then again, stories rarely are just stories. There is always something more than the words at hand. The shape of words shape our lives…or at least the way we know them. There was a man who... Read more
Tyranny of Uncertainty: Kenneth Smith, Nitrogen Hypoxia & I There is no tyranny greater than the tyranny of uncertainty. When you can hold all possibilities…you are able to hold all fears…and when you hold all fears you are able to hold all control. In recent months, the State of Alabama has refused to share even the simplest of evidence of safety precautions that they have in place for the first nitrogen hypoxia execution. We know about as much... Read more
LAW OFFICE OF GREGORY W GARDNER, PLLC _______________________________________________ GREGORY W GARDNER P.O. Box 2366 Boulder, Colorado 80306 gardnerlegal@gmail.com January 15, 2024 Sent Via Electronic Mail & U.S. Postal Service John Q. Hamm Commissioner Alabama Department of Corrections 301 South Ripley Street (Physical Address) P.O. Box 301501 (Mailing Address) Montgomery, Alabama 36130-1501 Electronic Mail Care of General Counsel Mary-Coleman Roberts: marycoleman.roberts@doc.alabama.gov Terry Raybon Warden Holman Correctional Facility 866 Ross Road (Physical Location) Holman 3700 (Mailing Address) Atmore, Alabama 36503-3700... Read more
Life is strange. The more we think we know the less we realize there is to know. Maybe better said, sometimes life is simple. The explosion of attention surrounding nitrogen hypoxia would make it easy to forget that there is a human in the midst of it all. Tonight, I was talking to Kenny Smith about everything he was/is going through. The pain of it all kept bubbling up. He is not doing well at all. Nausea. Vomiting. Nightmares. ... Read more
Early this morning, I sent the letter below to the Medical Board of California regarding Dr. Joseph Antognini. If you are as appalled as I am that a medical professional (in clear violation of the admonition to “do no harm”) is out here getting paid (thousands upon thousands of dollars) by state governments to defend their execution protocols, I urge you to do the same. There is ample evidence below (included in my complaint below contacts) to include in... Read more
God died in Alabama. The death wasn’t natural. The manner was a homicide. God suffocated. Never to be heard from again. Maybe not viscerally. How could one murder God? Sometimes our minds are imprisoned by the constraints of imagination. The death of God happened when morality slowly expired in the hearts and minds of Alabamians. When the populace became convinced that Jesus’ admonition to “Love your neighbor as you Love yourself” was a silly admonition for those who... Read more
Wineskins bust.: Parables from Death Row: Hood & Johnson Bart Johnson, Prisoner on Alabama’s Death Row The Rev. Dr. Jeff Hood, Death Row Spiritual Advisor Wineskins bust. You can’t put new wine in old wineskins. Such information seems meaningless unless you care about wineskins. Then again, the parables of Jesus always seem meaningless until we figure out a way to give them meaning…until we find a way to make them meaningful…meaningful to our moment. Some parables age better... Read more
A Vision, Dumpsters and Kenneth Smith in Alabama Deep in prayer this evening, I sought God’s guidance. I was transported to another place. There, I saw dumpsters full of people. Each dumpster was labeled in particular ways. The labels didn’t seem to matter as much as the dumpsters full of people. As I stood there, I kept seeing people thrown away in different dumpsters. Each time, a label was affixed to the person, and they were placed in... Read more
The United Nations, Kenny Smith & Alabama: Nuanced The United Nations (a panel of their experts) issued a press release today entitled, “United States: UN experts alarmed at prospect of first-ever untested execution by nitrogen hypoxia in Alabama.” In it, various international experts call for Kenneth (Kenny) Smith’s execution in Alabama to be stayed…citing their concern that the method of nitrogen hypoxia could possibly result in a “painful and humiliating” death. Of course, they’re right. There is no... Read more
Walk Away: On Moral Embarrassment, Alabama & Kenny Smith Earlier today I came across the following headline, “The Alabama Supreme Court has officially given the order to carry out the nation’s first nitrogen hypoxia execution.” The article contained the following announcement, “Starting at 12 a.m. on the 25th, the Alabama Department of Corrections will have 30 hours to execute Smith with nitrogen gas. The order expires at 6 a.m. on Jan. 26. If successful, Smith... Read more
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