People against the death penalty argue that it is cruel and unusual punishment and unconstitutional. In 1972, the U.S. Supreme court agreed with this but then in 1975 decided that it did not violate any part of the Constitution and executions resumed. The methods have not been deemed cruel and unusual. Hangings result in strangulation or complete decapitation. Firing squads have the prisoner tied to a chair and blindfolded while five individuals fire at a target attached to their chest.
Electrocution is the most widely known and used form.
The prisoner is strapped to a chair with electrodes attached all over his body. People that defend this form of punishment have no idea what happens to those that don't die instantly. John Evans was given three charges over fourteen minutes. After the first and second, he was still conscious and his flesh was burning. An official tried to stop this, but was unsuccessful.