The Utah firing squad is a legally authorized execution method that applies in three narrow situations: when a person sentenced to death before May 3, 2004, preserved the choice at sentencing, when a court rules lethal injection unconstitutional, or when the state cannot lawfully obtain lethal injection drugs at least 30 days before a scheduled execution. Lethal injection is the default for anyone sentenced after that 2004 date. Utah is the only state to have actually carried out a firing squad execution in the modern era, most recently in 2010.1Utah Legislature. Utah Code 77-18-113 – Judgment of Death — Method Is Lethal Injection — Exceptions for Use of Firing Squad
When Utah Uses the Firing Squad
Utah Code 77-18-113 sets three triggers. The first is grandfathered choice. A defendant sentenced before May 3, 2004, who selected the firing squad at the time keeps that selection, and a court can recognize the choice when the sentence moves toward execution. Ronnie Lee Gardner (sentenced in 1985) and Ralph Menzies (sentenced in 1988) both fall in this group.
The second is a constitutional ruling. If a court finds lethal injection unconstitutional, either on its face or as applied to a particular defendant, the firing squad takes its place.
The third is drug unavailability. If the sentencing court finds that the state cannot lawfully obtain the chemicals for lethal injection at least 30 days before the scheduled date, the firing squad becomes the method by default. The legislature added this provision in 2015 through House Bill 11, responding to the nationwide shortage of execution drugs that had stalled death sentences in several states.2Utah Legislature. HB0011 – Execution Methods Amendments In practice, the firing squad now functions as a legal failsafe rather than a preferred method.
How the Execution Is Carried Out
Responsibility for assembling the squad falls to the executive director of the Department of Corrections or a designee. Utah law requires five peace officers, all volunteers, and their identities stay permanently confidential.3Utah Legislature. Utah Code 77-19-10 – Sentence of Death — Location and Procedures for Execution4BBC News. How and Why Gardner Was Shot
Most of what is publicly known about the mechanics comes from Gardner’s 2010 execution. The squad used matched .30-caliber Winchester rifles, positioned roughly 25 feet from the chair behind a wall fitted with small gun ports. One rifle held a dummy round designed to produce the same recoil as a live cartridge, so no shooter can know with certainty whether they fired a lethal shot.5CBS News. Utah Firing Squad Executes Convicted Murderer4BBC News. How and Why Gardner Was Shot
The chamber uses sandbags stacked behind the chair to absorb rounds and prevent ricochets. Restraints hold the condemned individual in place, a hood covers the head, and a circular cloth target is pinned over the heart. On a signal, the five shooters fire a single coordinated volley. A physician then enters and certifies the death. In Gardner’s case, the entire process from volley to certification took about two minutes.
The execution itself must take place at a secure correctional facility on the date named in the death warrant, at an hour the department chooses. The condemned individual has access to religious and legal representatives in the final hours and is given an opportunity to make a final statement.6Utah Department of Corrections. Utah Department of Corrections Receives Death Warrant for Ralph Menzies
Who Can Attend
Attendance is not a right. The executive director of the Department of Corrections decides who may be present, no one under 18 is admitted, and every attendee is searched before entering.7Utah Legislature. Utah Code 77-19-11 – Who May Be Present — Photographic and Recording Equipment The statute names specific categories:
- The prosecuting attorney (or a deputy) from the county where the crime occurred, up to two law enforcement officials from that county, and the attorney general or a designee.
- Up to five people chosen by the condemned individual, which can include religious representatives, friends, or relatives.
- Up to five close relatives of the victim, selected by the director with priority to spouses, parents, and siblings.
- Press and broadcast members named by the director, who agree to serve as a pool for other outlets.
- Department staff as needed, plus up to three corrections officials from other states preparing for their own executions, with no more than two from any single state.
News directors or editors must submit a written media request to the executive director at least 30 days before the execution, verifying that the person is a working journalist and agreeing to pool duties and facility rules.8Legal Information Institute (LII). Utah Admin Code R251-107-7 – News Media
Executions on Record
Utah has used the firing squad longer than any other American jurisdiction, going back to its territorial period. Two modern cases anchor the record.
Gary Gilmore was executed by firing squad on January 17, 1977. He had waived his appeals and demanded the state proceed, making his the first execution in the United States after the Supreme Court reinstated capital punishment in 1976.9Death Penalty Information Center. Utah – Death Penalty Information Center
Ronnie Lee Gardner was executed on June 18, 2010, the most recent firing squad execution in the United States. He had chosen the method at his original sentencing in the 1980s. He was pronounced dead about two minutes after the volley.5CBS News. Utah Firing Squad Executes Convicted Murderer
Where the Method Stands Now
Four other states currently authorize the firing squad under certain conditions: Idaho, Mississippi, Oklahoma, and South Carolina. Most adopted or reauthorized the method in recent years as lethal injection drug shortages made backup methods a practical necessity.10Associated Press. The US Is Killing Someone by Firing Squad for the 1st Time in 15 Years Utah remains the only one to have carried out a firing squad execution in the modern era.
The active Utah case is Ralph Menzies. Because his 1988 sentence predates the 2004 cutoff, his firing squad selection is legally preserved, and the Department of Corrections publicly stated in mid-2025 that it would be ready to proceed.11Utah News Dispatch. Utah Corrections Officials Say They’ll Be Ready to Execute Ralph Menzies by Firing Squad A warrant set the execution for September 5, 2025, which would have been the first firing squad execution in the country since Gardner’s. The Utah Supreme Court then reversed the lower court’s order denying Menzies’s petition, vacated the warrant, and remanded for further proceedings.12Utah News Dispatch. Death Row Inmate Ralph Menzies Wins Appeal, Sept. 5 Execution Called Off As of late 2025, no new date has been set.