In Kentucky , the electric chair has been retired except for those whose capital crimes were committed prior to March 31 , 1998 , and who choose electrocution as their preferred mode of death .
In the state of Kentucky , the electric chair has been retired except for those whose capital crimes were committed before March 31 , 1997 , and who choose electrocution ; inmates who choose other methods and inmates who committed their crimes after the designated date are executed by lethal injection .